The election of Pope Leo XIV, who is the first U.S. pope and has Creole roots, is raising more awareness about the complexity of the Creole identity.

When Father Tony Ricard watched the new pope deliver his first address to the faithful Thursday in St. Peter’s Square, he felt an instant kinship.

Robert Francis Prevost, the Chicago-born cardinal selected Thursday as the next pope, is partially descended from Creole people of color, according to Jari C. Honora, a noted genealogist and