Central Algonquian languages
Encyclopedia
The Central Algonquian languages are commonly grouped together as a subgroup of the larger Algonquian family
, itself a member of the Algic family
. Though this grouping is often encountered in the literature, it is an areal grouping rather than a genetic one. In other words, the languages are grouped together because they were spoken near each other, not because they are any closer related to one another than to any other Algonquian language. Within the Algonquian family, only Eastern Algonquian
constitutes a separate genetic subgroup
.
Within the Central Algonquian grouping, the only languages known to be more closely related to each other than to any other Algonquian languages are Potawatomi
and Ojibwe
, which are generally grouped together in an Ojibwe–Potawatomi subbranch. However, there is some evidence for a larger subbranch within Central Algonquian, called "Eastern Great Lakes" by some and "Core Central" by Goddard (1994), consisting of Ojibwe–Potawatomi, Miami–Illinois, Fox–Sauk–Kickapoo
, and Shawnee
, and excluding Cree–Montagnais
and Menominee
. This grouping has been suggested on the basis of certain lexical and phonological innovations, though this theory has not yet been fully fleshed out and is still considered conjectural.
1. Cree-Montagnais
(also known as Cree or Cree-Montagnais-Naskapi)
2. Menominee
(also known as Menomini)
I. Eastern Great Lakes (also known as Core Central)
Algonquian languages
The Algonquian languages also Algonkian) are a subfamily of Native American languages which includes most of the languages in the Algic language family. The name of the Algonquian language family is distinguished from the orthographically similar Algonquin dialect of the Ojibwe language, which is a...
, itself a member of the Algic family
Algic languages
The Algic languages are an indigenous language family of North America. Most Algic languages belong to the Algonquian family, dispersed over a broad area from the Rocky Mountains to Atlantic Canada...
. Though this grouping is often encountered in the literature, it is an areal grouping rather than a genetic one. In other words, the languages are grouped together because they were spoken near each other, not because they are any closer related to one another than to any other Algonquian language. Within the Algonquian family, only Eastern Algonquian
Eastern Algonquian languages
The Eastern Algonquian languages constitute a subgroup of the Algonquian languages. Prior to European contact, Eastern Algonquian consisted of at least seventeen languages collectively occupying the Atlantic coast of North America and adjacent inland areas, from the Canadian Maritime provinces to...
constitutes a separate genetic subgroup
Historical linguistics
Historical linguistics is the study of language change. It has five main concerns:* to describe and account for observed changes in particular languages...
.
Within the Central Algonquian grouping, the only languages known to be more closely related to each other than to any other Algonquian languages are Potawatomi
Potawatomi language
Potawatomi is a Central Algonquian language and is spoken around the Great Lakes in Michigan and Wisconsin, as well as in Kansas in the United States, and in southern Ontario in Canada, 1300 Potawatomi people, all elderly...
and Ojibwe
Ojibwe language
Ojibwe , also called Anishinaabemowin, is an indigenous language of the Algonquian language family. Ojibwe is characterized by a series of dialects that have local names and frequently local writing systems...
, which are generally grouped together in an Ojibwe–Potawatomi subbranch. However, there is some evidence for a larger subbranch within Central Algonquian, called "Eastern Great Lakes" by some and "Core Central" by Goddard (1994), consisting of Ojibwe–Potawatomi, Miami–Illinois, Fox–Sauk–Kickapoo
Fox language
Fox is an Algonquian language, spoken by around 1000 Fox, Sauk, and Kickapoo in various locations in the Midwestern United States and in northern Mexico...
, and Shawnee
Shawnee language
The Shawnee language is a Central Algonquian language spoken in parts of central and northeastern Oklahoma by only around 200 Shawnee, making it an endangered language. It was originally spoken in Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania...
, and excluding Cree–Montagnais
Cree language
Cree is an Algonquian language spoken by approximately 117,000 people across Canada, from the Northwest Territories and Alberta to Labrador, making it the aboriginal language with the highest number of speakers in Canada. It is also spoken in the U.S. state of Montana...
and Menominee
Menominee language
The Menominee language is an Algonquian language originally spoken by the Menominee people of northern Wisconsin and Michigan. It is still spoken on the Menominee Nation lands in Northern Wisconsin in the United States....
. This grouping has been suggested on the basis of certain lexical and phonological innovations, though this theory has not yet been fully fleshed out and is still considered conjectural.
Family division
The languages are listed below along with dialects and subdialects. This classification follows Goddard (1996) and Mithun (1999).1. Cree-Montagnais
Cree language
Cree is an Algonquian language spoken by approximately 117,000 people across Canada, from the Northwest Territories and Alberta to Labrador, making it the aboriginal language with the highest number of speakers in Canada. It is also spoken in the U.S. state of Montana...
(also known as Cree or Cree-Montagnais-Naskapi)
- i. Cree
-
- Plains CreePlains Cree languagePlains Cree is a dialect of the Algonquian language, Cree, which is the most common Canadian indigenous language. Plains Cree is sometimes considered a dialect of the Cree-Montagnais language, or sometimes a dialect of the Cree language, distinct from the Montagnais language...
- Woods CreeWoods Cree languageWoods Cree is an Algonquian language spoken in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, Canada.It only has 14 letters in the alphabet. There are marked and unmarked letters...
- Western Swampy CreeSwampy Cree languageSwampy Cree is a dialect of the Cree language complex. Swampy Cree is spoken in a series of communities in northern Manitoba, central northeast of Saskatchewan along the Saskatchewan River and along the Hudson Bay coast and adjacent inland areas to the south and west, and Ontario along the coast...
- Eastern Swampy CreeSwampy Cree languageSwampy Cree is a dialect of the Cree language complex. Swampy Cree is spoken in a series of communities in northern Manitoba, central northeast of Saskatchewan along the Saskatchewan River and along the Hudson Bay coast and adjacent inland areas to the south and west, and Ontario along the coast...
and Moose CreeMoose Cree languageMoose Cree is an Algonquian language spoken in Ontario, Canada around the southern tip of James Bay.-References:*... - AtikamekwAtikamekw languageThe Atikamekw language , a dialect of Cree, is the language of the Atikamekw people of southwestern Quebec. It is spoken by nearly all the Atikamekw, and therefore it is among the indigenous languages least threatened with extinction according to some studies...
(also known as Attikamek, Attikamekw, Atikamek or Tête de Boule)
- Plains Cree
-
- ii. Montagnais-Naskapi
-
- East Cree (also known as James Bay Cree or Eastern Cree)
- Northern East CreeNorthern East Cree languageEast Cree, also known as Eastern James Bay Cree, and East Main Cree, refers to a group of Cree dialects spoken in Quebec, Canada on the east coast of lower Hudson Bay and James Bay, and inland southeastward from James Bay...
- Southern East Cree
- Northern East Cree
- NaskapiNaskapi languageNaskapi is an Algonquian language spoken by the Naskapi in Quebec and Labrador, Canada. It is written in Eastern Cree syllabics....
- Montagnais (also known as Innu-aimun or Innu)
- East Cree (also known as James Bay Cree or Eastern Cree)
-
2. Menominee
Menominee language
The Menominee language is an Algonquian language originally spoken by the Menominee people of northern Wisconsin and Michigan. It is still spoken on the Menominee Nation lands in Northern Wisconsin in the United States....
(also known as Menomini)
I. Eastern Great Lakes (also known as Core Central)
- a. Ojibwe–Potawatomi (also known as Ojibwe–Potawatomi–Ottawa, Anishinaabemowin, or the Anishinaabe language)
- 3. OjibweOjibwe languageOjibwe , also called Anishinaabemowin, is an indigenous language of the Algonquian language family. Ojibwe is characterized by a series of dialects that have local names and frequently local writing systems...
(also known as Ojibwa, Ojibway, Ojibwe–Ottawa, Ojibwemowin or the Anishinaabe language)- i. Northern
-
- AlgonquinAlgonquin languageAlgonquin is either a distinct Algonquian language closely related to the Ojibwe language or a particularly divergent Ojibwe dialect. It is spoken, alongside French and to some extent English, by the Algonquin First Nations of Quebec and Ontario...
- Oji-CreeOji-Cree languageThe Severn Ojibwa or the Oji-Cree language is the indigenous name for a dialect of the Ojibwe language spoken in a series of Oji-Cree communities in northern Ontario and at Island Lake, Manitoba, Canada...
(also known as Severn Ojibwe, Anishininiimowin or the Anishinini language)
- Algonquin
-
- ii. Southern
-
- SaulteauxWestern Ojibwa languageWestern Ojibwa is a dialect of the Ojibwe language, a member of the Algonquian language family. It is spoken by the Saulteaux, a sub-Nation of the Ojibwe people, in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, Canada westward from Lake Winnipeg...
(also known as Nakawēmowin, Plains Ojibwe or Western Ojibwe) - Eastern OjibweEastern Ojibwa languageEastern Ojibwe is a dialect of the Ojibwe language spoken north of Lake Ontario and east of Georgian Bay in Ontario, Canada. Eastern Ojibwe-speaking communities include Rama and Curve Lake. Ojibwe is an Algonquian language....
(also known as Mississauga Ojibwa or Jibwemwin) - Southwestern OjibweChippewa languageChippewa is an Algonquian language spoken from upper Michigan westward to North Dakota in the United States. It represents the southern component of the Ojibwe language. Its ISO-3 designation is "ciw".Chippewa is part of the Algonquian language family and an indigenous language of North America...
(also known as Chippewa, Ojibwe, Ojibwa, Ojibwemowin or Ojibway) - OttawaOttawa languageOttawa is a dialect of the Ojibwe language, spoken by the Ottawa people in southern Ontario in Canada, and northern Michigan in the United States. Descendants of migrant Ottawa speakers live in Kansas and Oklahoma...
(also known as Odawa or Daawaamwin) - Northern OjibweNorthwestern Ojibwa languageNorthwestern Ojibwe is a dialect of the Ojibwe language, spoken in Ontario and Manitoba, Canada. Ojibwe is a member of the Algonquian language family.-References:...
(also known as Northwestern Ojibwe) - Nipissing AlgonquinCentral Ojibwa languageCentral Ojibwa is an Algonquian language spoken in Ontario, Canada from Lake Nipigon in the west to Lake Nipissing in the east.-References:*...
(also known simply as Algonquin)
- Saulteaux
-
- i. Northern
- 4. PotawatomiPotawatomi languagePotawatomi is a Central Algonquian language and is spoken around the Great Lakes in Michigan and Wisconsin, as well as in Kansas in the United States, and in southern Ontario in Canada, 1300 Potawatomi people, all elderly...
- 3. Ojibwe
- 5. Fox (also known as Fox-Sauk-Kickapoo or Mesquakie-Sauk-Kickapoo)
-
- FoxFox languageFox is an Algonquian language, spoken by around 1000 Fox, Sauk, and Kickapoo in various locations in the Midwestern United States and in northern Mexico...
(also known as Meskwaki, Mesquakie, or Meshkwahkihaki) - Sauk (also known as Sac and Fox)
- Kickapoo
- MascoutenMascoutenThe Mascouten were a tribe of Algonquian-speaking native Americans who are believed to have dwelt on both sides of the Mississippi River adjacent to the present-day Wisconsin-Illinois border....
(unattested)
- Fox
-
- 6. ShawneeShawnee languageThe Shawnee language is a Central Algonquian language spoken in parts of central and northeastern Oklahoma by only around 200 Shawnee, making it an endangered language. It was originally spoken in Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania...
- 7. Miami-Illinois
-
- Miami
- Illinois
- PeoriaPeoria (tribe)The Peoria people are a Native American tribe. Today they are enrolled in the federally recognized Peoria Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma. Historically, they were part of the Illinois Confederation.-History:...
- WeaWeaThe Wea were a Miami-Illinois-speaking tribe originally located in western Indiana, closely related to the Miami. The name Wea is used today as the a shortened version of their many recorded names...
-