Afro-American Griot Speaks

Basically, this started in 1969-70 while I was on vacation in Houston, Texas. I asked my grandfather, Nelson Mason Jones, Sr., 'Granddaddy, where do we come from and who are we?' And he answered, 'They say we are Guitchees.' It was said so ominously, I did not know whether that was bad, like being a criminal or top secret like being a spy. Since then, I have heard a number of explanations such as 1) these were Blacks who settled in the islands off Louisiana, and 2) these were Blacks who were basically English speakers among people whose primary language was not English. You can take your pick of definitions, or even add a new one; I'm still not sure what the definition is!