la·gniappe (lnyp, ln-yp)
n. Chiefly Southern Louisiana & Mississippi
1. A small gift presented by a storeowner to a customer with the customer's purchase.
2. An extra or unexpected gift or benefit. Also called regionally boot2. See Regional Note at beignet.
[Louisiana French, from American Spanish)
Regional Note: Lagniappe derives from New World Spanish la ñapa, "the gift," and ultimately from Quechua yapay, "to give more." The word came into the rich Creole dialect mixture of New Orleans and there acquired a French spelling. It is still used in the Gulf states, especially southern Louisiana, to denote a little bonus that a friendly shopkeeper might add to a purchase. By extension, it may mean "an extra or unexpected gift or benefit."
Lagniappe is thrown from floats into the crowd at Mardi Gras. Here are several varieties at The French Market, an open-air market. I think that here you're expected to buy them.
Mardi Gras masks in the foreground, lagniappe beads on the far left.
There's lots of lagniappe to choose from.
This is The French Market. Lots of lagniappe, plus Louisiana crawfish, shrimp and crabs on sale here.
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