New Orleans knows how to turn history into a parade and dinner into an event, so bring your curiosity and save room for beignets.
These New Orleans trivia questions roll through jazz, Mardi Gras, Creole cooking, riverfront landmarks, storied neighborhoods, and championship moments.
The Crescent City on the Map
Q: What U.S. state is New Orleans in?
A: Louisiana.
Q: Which river curves past New Orleans?
A: The Mississippi River.
Q: What nickname refers to the river's crescent-shaped bend around the city?
A: The Crescent City.
Q: Which large lake lies north of New Orleans?
A: Lake Pontchartrain.
Q: What body of water ultimately receives the Mississippi south of the city?
A: The Gulf of Mexico.
Q: What parish contains most of New Orleans?
A: Orleans Parish.
Q: Which cardinal direction does the West Bank lie from much of central New Orleans?
A: South.
Q: What long bridge crosses Lake Pontchartrain?
A: The Lake Pontchartrain Causeway.
Q: Which neighborhood sits directly downriver from the French Quarter?
A: The Faubourg Marigny.
Q: What avenue divides the upriver and downriver street-address systems?
A: Canal Street.
Q: What term do locals often use instead of north, toward the lake?
A: Lakeside.
Q: What term means toward the Mississippi River in local directions?
A: Riverside.
Q: Which neighborhood is home to Tulane and Loyola universities?
A: Uptown.
Q: What city park is one of the country's largest urban parks?
A: New Orleans City Park.
Q: Which waterway connects Lake Pontchartrain with the Mississippi River?
A: The Industrial Canal.
French Quarter Favorites
Q: What is the oldest neighborhood in New Orleans?
A: The French Quarter.
Q: What is the French name for the French Quarter?
A: Vieux Carré.
Q: Which street is famous for nightlife and neon signs?
A: Bourbon Street.
Q: What ironwork-lined street is known for galleries and antique shops?
A: Royal Street.
Q: What square faces St. Louis Cathedral?
A: Jackson Square.
Q: Which cathedral overlooks Jackson Square?
A: St. Louis Cathedral.
Q: Which military hero stands on horseback in Jackson Square?
A: Andrew Jackson.
Q: What historic building beside the cathedral housed Louisiana's colonial government?
A: The Cabildo.
Q: What matching building on the cathedral's other side was originally a residence for Capuchin monks?
A: The Presbytère.
Q: What open-air market stretches from the French Quarter toward the Marigny?
A: The French Market.
Q: What landscaped riverfront park stretches from the Audubon Aquarium toward Jackson Square?
A: Woldenberg Park.
Q: What cocktail is traditionally made with rye, Peychaud's bitters, sugar, and absinthe rinse?
A: The Sazerac.
Q: Which bar claims to be the home of the Hurricane cocktail?
A: Pat O'Brien's.
Q: What alley beside St. Louis Cathedral is a favorite spot for street performers?
A: Pirates Alley.
Q: What color are the streetcars on the St. Charles line?
A: Green.
From Colonial Port to American City
Q: Which French explorer founded New Orleans in 1718?
A: Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville.
Q: For whom was New Orleans named?
A: Philippe II, Duke of Orléans.
Q: Which European country transferred Louisiana to Spain in 1762?
A: France.
Q: What two fires destroyed much of the city in the late 18th century?
A: The Great New Orleans Fires of 1788 and 1794.
Q: Which country regained Louisiana from Spain before selling it to the United States?
A: France.
Q: What 1803 land deal made New Orleans part of the United States?
A: The Louisiana Purchase.
Q: Which 1815 battle ended in a major American victory near New Orleans?
A: The Battle of New Orleans.
Q: Who commanded the American forces at the Battle of New Orleans?
A: Andrew Jackson.
Q: Which pirate aided the Americans at that battle?
A: Jean Lafitte.
Q: What 19th-century industry made New Orleans a major port for a grim trade in enslaved people and cotton?
A: The plantation economy.
Q: Which side captured New Orleans in 1862 during the Civil War?
A: The Union.
Q: Who was the Union naval commander in the capture of New Orleans?
A: David Farragut.
Q: What 1892 New Orleans arrest led to the Supreme Court case Plessy v. Ferguson?
A: Homer Plessy's arrest for sitting in a whites-only railcar.
Q: What 1905 epidemic was the last major yellow fever outbreak in the United States?
A: The New Orleans yellow fever epidemic.
Q: In what year did Hurricane Katrina strike New Orleans?
A: 2005.
Jazz Was Born Here
Q: Which musical genre is widely recognized as having been born in New Orleans?
A: Jazz.
Q: Which New Orleans trumpeter recorded “What a Wonderful World”?
A: Louis Armstrong.
Q: What nickname was Louis Armstrong known by?
A: Satchmo.
Q: Which district became famous for music and nightlife around 1900?
A: Storyville.
Q: Which pianist and composer claimed to have invented jazz?
A: Jelly Roll Morton.
Q: Which cornetist led an influential early jazz band but left no commercial recordings?
A: Buddy Bolden.
Q: Which clarinetist was nicknamed the Creole Wild Man?
A: Sidney Bechet.
Q: Which New Orleans pianist wrote “Tipitina”?
A: Professor Longhair.
Q: Which singer and pianist had a hit with “Blueberry Hill”?
A: Fats Domino.
Q: Which family of musicians includes Ellis, Branford, Wynton, Delfeayo, and Jason?
A: The Marsalis family.
Q: What music venue on St. Peter Street preserves traditional New Orleans jazz?
A: Preservation Hall.
Q: What annual festival presents jazz, gospel, blues, zydeco, and Louisiana food?
A: The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.
Q: What brass-band tradition involves dancers known as the second line?
A: Jazz funerals and social aid and pleasure club parades.
Q: Which studio run by Cosimo Matassa recorded many early New Orleans R&B classics?
A: J&M Recording Studio.
Q: What HBO drama followed musicians rebuilding their lives after Katrina?
A: Treme.
Mardi Gras Magic
Q: What celebration reaches its climax on the day before Ash Wednesday?
A: Mardi Gras.
Q: What does Mardi Gras mean in French?
A: Fat Tuesday.
Q: What three official Mardi Gras colors are seen across New Orleans?
A: Purple, green, and gold.
Q: What does purple symbolize in Mardi Gras tradition?
A: Justice.
Q: What does green symbolize?
A: Faith.
Q: What does gold symbolize?
A: Power.
Q: What is a Mardi Gras parade organization called?
A: A krewe.
Q: Which krewe first staged a nighttime parade in 1857?
A: The Mistick Krewe of Comus.
Q: What items tossed from parade floats are called collectively?
A: Throws.
Q: What decorated trinkets have become prized signature throws?
A: Mardi Gras beads.
Q: Which all-female krewe is famous for hand-decorated shoe throws?
A: The Krewe of Muses.
Q: Which krewe is known for decorated coconut throws?
A: The Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club.
Q: What cake hides a small plastic baby during Carnival season?
A: King cake.
Q: What parade features costumed dogs in the French Quarter?
A: Krewe of Barkus.
Q: What masked Black tradition creates elaborate hand-beaded suits?
A: Mardi Gras Indians.
A Menu Worth Traveling For
Q: What powdered-sugar-covered pastry is a New Orleans staple?
A: A beignet.
Q: Which French Quarter café is famous for beignets and café au lait?
A: Café du Monde.
Q: What rice dish blends meat or seafood with vegetables and spices?
A: Jambalaya.
Q: What thick Louisiana stew is commonly served over rice?
A: Gumbo.
Q: What thickener made from flour and fat begins many gumbo recipes?
A: Roux.
Q: What sandwich was created for striking streetcar workers in 1929?
A: The po'boy.
Q: What round sandwich layers Italian meats, cheese, and olive salad?
A: The muffuletta.
Q: Which French Market grocery created the muffuletta?
A: Central Grocery.
Q: What dessert flambés bananas with rum and serves them over ice cream?
A: Bananas Foster.
Q: Which restaurant created Bananas Foster?
A: Brennan's.
Q: What praline nut is traditional in New Orleans candy?
A: The pecan.
Q: What coffee flavoring made from roasted root is popular in New Orleans?
A: Chicory.
Q: What red-bean dish is traditionally eaten on Mondays?
A: Red beans and rice.
Q: What shellfish stars in a classic Rockefeller preparation created at Antoine's?
A: Oysters.
Q: What spicy sausage commonly appears in gumbo and jambalaya?
A: Andouille.
Neighborhoods, Homes, and Haunts
Q: What narrow New Orleans house style is usually only one room wide?
A: A shotgun house.
Q: What raised home style takes its name from a warm Gulf Coast climate?
A: A Creole cottage.
Q: Which district is known for grand antebellum mansions and oak-lined streets?
A: The Garden District.
Q: Which streetcar line runs along St. Charles Avenue?
A: The St. Charles streetcar line.
Q: Why are many New Orleans tombs built above ground?
A: The high water table and flood-prone soil.
Q: Which cemetery is the reputed burial place of Marie Laveau?
A: St. Louis Cemetery No. 1.
Q: Who was Marie Laveau?
A: A famous 19th-century Voodoo practitioner.
Q: Which neighborhood gave its name to an HBO series about post-Katrina life?
A: Tremé.
Q: What historic African American neighborhood is often called the oldest of its kind in the United States?
A: Tremé.
Q: Which park in Tremé was historically a gathering place for enslaved and free people of color?
A: Congo Square.
Q: What former warehouse district is now known for museums and galleries?
A: The Arts District.
Q: Which museum on Magazine Street focuses on the Allied victory in World War II?
A: The National WWII Museum.
Q: What lavish Garden District mansion appeared in American Horror Story: Coven?
A: Buckner Mansion.
Q: Which author set Interview with the Vampire partly in New Orleans?
A: Anne Rice.
Q: What street is the heart of the Marigny's live-music scene?
A: Frenchmen Street.
Teams, Traditions, and City Icons
Q: What is New Orleans's NFL team?
A: The Saints.
Q: What song is closely associated with Saints victories?
A: “When the Saints Go Marching In.”
Q: What is the Saints' home stadium called?
A: The Caesars Superdome.
Q: What NBA team plays in New Orleans?
A: The Pelicans.
Q: What bird is the Pelicans' mascot named after?
A: A brown pelican.
Q: Which university's teams are called the Green Wave?
A: Tulane University.
Q: What annual college football game is played in New Orleans?
A: The Sugar Bowl.
Q: Which NFL championship game did the Saints win in 2010?
A: Super Bowl XLIV.
Q: Who was the Saints quarterback for that championship?
A: Drew Brees.
Q: What local phrase means something extra given as a bonus?
A: Lagniappe.
Q: What city's name is abbreviated NOLA?
A: New Orleans, Louisiana.
Q: Which Tennessee Williams play is set in the French Quarter?
A: A Streetcar Named Desire.
Q: What New Orleans streetcar is named in that play?
A: Desire.
Q: Which Disney animated film features a New Orleans waitress named Tiana?
A: The Princess and the Frog.
Q: What steamboat offers jazz cruises on the Mississippi?
A: The Steamboat Natchez.
Laissez les Bons Temps Rouler
If you made it through every brass break and king-cake crumb, your score deserves a second line. Keep the good times going with pop culture trivia or meet more memorable names in famous people trivia.
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