Monday, January 1, 2024

Acaau of Les Cayes


Although we were hoping to trace the roots of the Piquet leader, Acaau, deeper into the colonial era or back to Africa, we did find a few instances in which his name appeared in the civil registry of Les Cayes, available at the Family Search site. According to the above document, registering the birth of a fille naturelle in the 1830s, Acaau was already a sous-lieutenant of the district's rural police. This position must have prepared him well for his future role as a leader of the rural population in the area in the 1840s. He was already known and had some authority. 


From another birth record for Acaau's child, we learn he had a brother, Gil Acaau. Unfortunately, I was unable to find any Caroline Acaau, but the birth records at least tell us that the famous leader had a brother. According to Madiou, Acaau was literate, which one can see in the signature in one of the birth records. Either way, it is interesting to have a very limited glimpse of Acaau before his (in)famous movement in the 1840s. 

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