The Mohave occupied some territory in the neighborhood of the Colorado River. The Mohave belong to the Yuman linguistic family.
Mohave Indians
22 ViewsAugust 13, 2017
Tribes by Language
At the time of Columbus’ arrival, America had a population of 75,000,000 people that spoke 2,000 languages in North, Central, and South America. In the world today, approximately 6,000 languages are spoken, and only about 600 languages are expected to survive this century. There are more than 800 indigenous languages in the Western Hemisphere. In the US, 165 native american languages are still spoken.
Seventy-four native american languages are almost extinct, with only a handful of elderly speakers. Fifty-eight indigenous languages have fewer than 1,000 fluent speakers, twenty-five have 1,000-10,000 speakers, and only 8 native american languages have more than 10,000 speakers.
Language scholars estimate that before the time of Columbus, over 300 languages were spoken in North America north of Mexico. Since then, that number has dropped to about 175 indigenous languages. One estimate predicts that number will dwindle to less than 20 by the year 2050. When our children were sent to government boarding schools, they were severely punished for speaking our native languages, and over time many of them were nearly forgotten. Many indigenous languages of the Americas are endangered, and many others are extinct, with no living native speakers. We believe that languages have a spirit all their own.It is our vision for the future to once again hear whole generations of native people fluently speaking thier native languages. For as long as one person speaks a language, that language’s people and traditions and history will survive and thrive.
The classification below is a composite of Goddard (1996), Campbell (1997), and Mithun (1999).
Native American Languages in the United States
Adai †
Algic
Carolina Algonquian (United States) (also known as Pamlico, Pamtico, Pampticough, Christianna Algonquian) †
Central Algonquian(23)
Atikamekw (Canada)
Moose Cree (Canada)
Northern East Cree (Canada)
Plains Cree (Canada)
Southern East Cree (Canada)
Swampy Cree (Canada)
Woods Cree (Canada)
Montagnais (Canada)
Naskapi (Canada)
Ojibwa (8)
Algonquin (Canada)
Chippewa (United States)
Central Ojibwa (Canada)
Eastern Ojibwa(Canada)
Northwestern Ojibwa (Canada)
Severn Ojibwa (Canada)
Western Ojibwa (Canada)
Ottawa (Canada)
Kickapoo (United States)
Menominee (United States)
Meskwaki (United States)
Miami (United States) (aka Illinois and Illinois-Miami) (Officially extinct but a revitalization program is in progress since an extensive dictionary exists)
Potawatomi (United States)
Shawnee (United States)
Delaware
Munsee
Unami (also known as Lenape) †
Northern Unami
Southern Unami
Unalachtigo
Eastern Abnaki,(United States)(also known as Abenaki or Abenaki-Penobscot)
Penobscot (also known as Old Town or Old Town Penobscot)
Caniba
Aroosagunticook
Pigwacket
Etchemin (uncertain) †
Loup A (probably Nipmuck) (uncertain) †
Loup B (Uncertain) †
Western Abnaki (Canada) (also known as Abnaki, St. Francis, Abenaki, or Abenaki-Penobscot)
Malecite-Passamaquoddy (Canada) (also known as Maliseet-Passamquoddy)
Maliseet (also known as Malecite)
Passamaquoddy
Massachusett (United States) †
North Shore (United States)
Natick (United States)
Wampanoag (United States)
Nauset (United States)
Cowesit (United States)
Micmac (Canada and United States) (also known as Mic Mac, Mi’kmaq, Mi’gmaq, or Mi’kmaw)
Mohegan-Montauk-Narragansett (United States) (aka Mohegan-Pequot-Montauk)
Mohegan †
Montauk
Narragansett †
Niantic
Pequot †
Shinnecock (uncertain) †
Munsee (Canada)
Nanticoke (United States)
Nanticoke †
Piscataway (also known as Conoy)
Choptank
Powhatan (United States) (also known as Virginia Algonquian) †
Quiripi-Naugatuck-Unquachog
Quiripi (also known as Quinnipiak or Connecticut) †
Naugatuck †
Unquachog †
Arapaho (3)
Arapaho (Heenetiit) (United States)
Gros Ventre (United States)
Nawathinehena (United States)
Blackfoot (Canada) and Blackfeet (United States)
Cheyenne (United States)
Mahican (also known as Mohican) (Extinct)
Moravian
Stockbridge
Piscataway (United States)
Unclassified (1)
Lumbee (United States)
Wiyot(1)
Wiyot (United States) †
Yurok(1)
Yurok (United States)
Alsean (2) †
Atakapa †
Beothuk †
Caddoan (Macro-Siouan?)(5)
Northern Caddoan (4)
Pawnee-Kitsai (3)
Kitsai (1) (a.k.a. Kichai)
Kitsai (USA)
Pawnee (2)
Arikara (USA) (a.k.a. Ree)
Pawnee (USA) (dialects: South Bend, Skiri (a.k.a. Skidi or Wolf Band))
Wichita (1)
Wichita (USA) (dialects: Wichita proper, Waco, Towakoni)
Southern Caddoan (1)
Caddo (USA) (dialects: Kadohadacho, Hasinai, Natchitoches, Yatasi)
Cayuse †
Chimakuan (2)
Chimakum (USA)
Quileute (USA)
Chimariko †
Chinookan (3)
Kathlamet (a.k.a. Katlamat, Cathlamet)
Lower Chinook (a.k.a. Coastal Chinook)
Clatsop (USA)
Shoalwater (a.k.a. Chinook proper) (USA)
Upper Chinook (a.k.a. Kiksht, Columbia Chinook)
Cascades (USA)
Clackamas (USA)
Hood River (USA)
Multnomah (USA)
Wasco-Wishram (2)
Wasco (USA)
Wishram (USA)
White Salmon (USA)
Chitimacha †
Chumashan (7)
Barbareño (USA)
Chumash (USA) †
Cruzeño (USA)
Ineseño (USA)
Obispeño (USA)
Purisimeño (USA)
Ventureño (USA)
Coahuilteco †
Comecrudan (United States & Mexico) (3) †
Comecrudo (a.k.a. Mulato or Carrizo)
Garza
Mamulique (a.k.a. Carrizo de Mamulique)
Coosan (2) † (This language has been moved to Penutian.)
Hanis
Miluk (also known as Lower Coquille)
Creole Language Family
Cotoname †
Eskimo–Aleut (7) (also called Eskaleut)
Aleut
Western-Central
Atkan
Attuan
Unangan
Bering
Eastern
Unalaskan
Pribilof
Eskimo(Yupik-Inuit languages)
Yupik (or Yup’ik)
Central Alaskan Yup’ik
Yugtun Alutiiq (Pacific Gulf Yup’ik)
Central Siberian Yupik (Yuit or Chaplinon and St. Lawrence Island)
Naukan
Qawiaraq(Seward Peninsula)
Chaplinski Sirenik † (viewed as an independent branch by some)
Inuit
Inupiaq or Inupiat (northern Alaska)
Inuvialuktun (western Canada)
Kangiryuarmiutun (Ulukhaktok sometimes listed as Inuinnaqtun)
Siglitun (Paulatuk, Sachs Harbour, Tuktoyaktuk)
Uummarmiutun (Aklavik, Inuvik from Inupiaq)
Inuktitut (eastern Canada)
Nunatsiavummiutut (Nunatsiavut)
Inuttitut (Nunavik)
Kalaallisut (Greenland)
Inuktun (Avanersuarmiutut)East Greenlandic (Tunumiit oraasiat)
Hokan (23)
Esselen-Yuman (10)
Esselen † (1)
Esselen (United States)
Yuman (9)
Cochimi (1)
Cochimi (Mexico)
Delta-Californian (2)
Cocopa (Mexico)
Kumiai (Mexico)
Kiliwa (1)
Kiliwa (Mexico)
Pai (1)
Paipai (Mexico)
River Yuman (3)
Maricopa (United States)
Mohave (United States)
Quechan (United States)
Upland Yuman (1)
Havasupai-Walapai-Yavapai (United States)
Northern (12)
Karok-Shasta (4)
Shasta-Palaihnihan (3)
Palaihnihan (2)
Shastan (1)
Karok
Pomo (7)
Russian River and Eastern (6)
Eastern (1)
Russian River (5)
Southeastern (1)
Southeastern Pomo (United States)
Chimariko (United States)
Washo (1)
Washo (United States)
Iroquoian (11)
Northern Iroquoian
Lakes Iroquoian
Five Nations and Susquehannock
Seneca-Onondaga
Seneca-Cayuga
Seneca
Cayuga
Onodaga
Mohawk-Oneida
Oneida
Mohawk
Susquehannock †
Huronian
Wyandot (Huron-Petun)†
Neutral †
Erie †
Tuscarora-Nottoway
Tuscarora (seriously endangered)
Nottoway †
Southern Iroquoian
Cherokee
Kalapuyan (3) †
Karankawa †
Karuk
Keresan (2)
Eastern Keres
Western Keres
Kutenai
Maiduan (4)
Muskogean (9)
Western Muskogean
Chickasaw
Choctaw
Central Muskogean
Alabama (alternate name: Alibamu
Apalachee †
Hitchiti-Mikisaki
Koasati (alternate name: Coushatta)
Eastern Muskogean
Creek (alternate names: Muskogee, Maskoke, Seminole)
Na-Dene (47)
Haida (2)
Northern Haida (Canada)
Sothern Haida (Canada)
Nuclear Na-Dene (45)
Athapaskan-Eyak (44)
Athapaskan (43)
Apachean (6)
Kiowa Apache (1)
Apache, Kiowa [apk] (United States)
Navajo-Apache (5)
Eastern Apache (3)
Apache, Jicarilla (United States)
Apache, Lipan (United States)
Apache, Mescalero-Chiricahua (United States)
Western Apache-Navajo (2)
Apache, Western (United States)
Navajo (United States)
Canadian (13)
Beaver-Sekani (2)
Beaver(Canada)
Sekani (Canada)
Carrier-Chilcotin (4)
Babine-Carrier (3)
Babine (Canada)
Carrier
Southern Carrier(Canada)
Chilcotin (1)
Han-Kutchin (2)
Gwich’in(Canada)
Han (USA)
Hare-Chipewyan (4)
Sarcee (1)
Ingalik-Koyukon (3)
Ingalik (1)
Koyukon-Holikachuk (2)
Pacific Coast (9)
California (4)
Oregon (5)
Tahltan-Kaska (3)
Kaska (Canada)
Tahltan(Canada)
Tagish(Canada)
Tanaina-Ahtna (2)
Ahtena (USA)
Tanaina(USA)
Tanana-Upper Kuskokwim (4)
Tanana (3)
Upper Kuskokwim (1)
Tutchone (2)
Southern Tutchone(Canada)
Northern Tutchone(Canada)
Tstsaut(Canada)
Eyak (1)
Eyak(USA)
Tlingit (1)
Tlingit (USA)
Natchez †
Palaihnihan (2)
Plateau Penutian (4) (also known as Shahapwailutan)
Pomoan (7)
Salinan †
Salishan (23)
Shastan (4) †
Siouan–Catawban (19)
Siuslaw †
Solano †
Takelma †
Tanoan (7)
Timucua †
Tonkawa †
Tsimshianic (2)
Tunica †
Utian (15) (also known as Miwok–Costanoan)
Uto-Aztecan (33)
Wakashan (7)
Wappo †
Washo
Wintuan (4)
Yana †
Yokutsan (3)
Yuchi
Yuki †
Yuman (11)
Zuni
† = Extinct languages
Unclassified Languages:
Campbell et al. (2007) list the following extinct and nearly unattested language varieties of North America as unclassifiable due to lack of data.
Eyeish
Coree
Sewee
Cusabo
Shoccoree-Eno (see Eno people)
Pascagoula
Quinipissa
Opelousa
Pedee
Bayogoula
Okelousa
Congaree
Winyaw (see Winyaw)
Santee (see Santee tribe. distinguish Santee Sioux)
Okchai-Chacato (see Okchai, Chatot people)
Tequesta
Guale
Sanan
Yamasee
Akokisa
Avoyel
Tocobaga (see Tocobaga)
Houma
Neusiok (see Neusiok people)
Ubate
Cape Fear
Pensacola (see Pensacola people)
Bidai
Wateree (see Wateree people)
Mobile
Michigamea
Pakana
Saxapahaw
Keyauwee
Guachichil *
Suma-Jumano * (see Suma & Jumanos)
Huite *
Concho *
Jova *
Acaxee * (see Acaxee)
Xixime (Jijime) *
Zacatec * (see Zacatecos; perhaps the same as Acaxee)
Tahue *
Guasave *
Toboso * (see Tobosos)
* Ethnographic evidences suggests these varieties might have been Uto-Aztecan
Northern Paiute Indians
22 ViewsAugust 13, 2017
The Northern Paiute occupied part of the Sierra in the southeastern part of California and the desert country east of it and also a strip of land in the extreme northeast. They spoke a Uto-Aztecan language from the Western Numic branch.
Cupeño Indians
22 ViewsAugust 13, 2017
The Cupeno spoke a dialect belonging to the Luiseno-Cahuilla branch of the Shoshonean division of the Uto-Aztecan linguistic stock.
Wiyot Indians
22 ViewsAugust 13, 2017
Wiyot is the name of one of three culturally and linguistically related groups on the Eel River Delta in the early nineteenth century. They were culturally similar to the Yurok.
In the Powellian classification the Wiyot Indians were given an independent position as the Wishoskan stock.
Later California investigators combined them with the Yurok under the name Ritwan but still later believed that they had established a relationship between them and the great Algonquian family of the east. This allocation is, however, questioned by other ethnologists.
Achomawi Indians
22 ViewsAugust 13, 2017
The Achomawi Indians were originally classed with the Atsugewi as one stock under the name Palaihnihan, the Achomawan stock of Merriam (1926), and this in turn constitutes the eastern branch of the Shastan stock, which in turn is now placed under the widely spread Hokan family.
Kato Indians
22 ViewsAugust 13, 2017
The Kato Indians belonged to the Athapascan linguistic stock, and spoke a dialect peculiar to themselves.
Bear River Indians
24 ViewsAugust 13, 2017
The Bear River Indians belonged to the Athapascan linguistic family, and were most closely connected with the Mattole, Sinkyone, and Nongatl tribes to the south and east.
Kawaiisu Indians
22 ViewsAugust 13, 2017
The Kawaiisu belonged to the Shoshonean branch of the Uto-Aztecan linguistic family, and were a more immediate off-shoot, apparently, of the Chemehuevi.
Costanoan Subdivisions and Villages
22 ViewsJuly 27, 2017
The Costanoan language formed one division of the Penutian linguistic stock. Costanoan speaking people lived on the California coast between San Francisco Bay and Point Sur, and inland probably to the Mount Diablo Range.
California Penutian Speaking Tribes
22 ViewsJuly 27, 2017
Penutian roots are old in California and expanded after Hokan languages were established in the state. To the extent that language and culture may be related, Penutian was the most typically “Californian” of any linguistic root language. In 1750 AD speakers of Penutian tongues occupied nearly half of California and were a solid block of about 30 groups in the California heartland.
Algonquian tribes and their names
22 ViewsSeptember 25, 2016
This is a list of tribes or sub-tribes who are part of the Algonquian linguistic group. (from the word “alligewinenk” which means “come together from distant places.”) This is a work in progress. There are probably others. The Algonquian-speaking (linguistic) groups include:
August 28, 2015
Navajo Nation voters passed a referendum last month that allows for the first time for a non-Navajo speaker to be president. The move, while political, sparked a dialogue among people who see their language threatened as never before. Some Navajos say the approval of the referendum represents a paradigm shift.
July 24, 2015
Martha Birdbear is a fluent Hidatsa speaker and currently an elementary language instructor at the Mandaree Public School.
April 15, 2015
Here is a chart of the 88 languages indigenous to the state of California. Hypothesized MACRO-UNITS are in bold caps and italicized, FAMILIESin bold caps only, SUBGROUPS are in in small caps, individual languages in boldface, and dialects in italics:
April 13, 2015
Here is a chart of indigenous languages spoken in the US, along with the locations where they are spoken, and the number of fluent (first language) speakers for each language.
April 13, 2015
There are 86 native American languages that are indigenous to the state of California, more than any other state.
Gwich’in Language
22 ViewsApril 13, 2015
Gwich’in Language Online Gwich’in Language Translation Tool: 428 entries Courtesy of Freelang Dictionary GWICH’IN => ENGLISH : ENGLISH => GWICH’IN : Whole word
Choctaw Language
22 ViewsApril 13, 2015
Choctaw Language Online Choctaw Translation Tool: (537 entries) Courtesy of Freelang Dictionary CHOCTAW => ENGLISH : ENGLISH => CHOCTAW : Whole word
April 9, 2015
Of the Native American languages of the U.S., 90% are not being passed on to a new generation. There were 312 American Indian languages in use when Europeans first arrived in North America; of these, 123 (40%) are known to have lost all native speakers. Of those that remain, all except two are endangered. Only 20 of these (13%) are being learned by children, and by fewer children each year.
Most of these languages will cease to be spoken in your lifetime, if language revitalization programs are not successful.
Are you related to the Aztecs?
22 ViewsApril 7, 2015
For five centuries, North Americans have been fascinated and intrigued by stories of the magnificent Aztec Empire. This extensive Mesoamerican Empire was in its ascendancy during the late Fifteenth and early Sixteenth Centuries. The Aztec Empire of 1519 was the most powerful Mesoamerican kingdom of all time.
This multi-ethnic, multi-lingual realm stretched for more than 80,000 square miles through many parts of what are now central and southern Mexico. This enormous empire reached from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf coast and from central Mexico to the present-day Republic of Guatemala. Fifteen million people, living in thirty-eight provinces and residing in 489 communities, paid tribute to the Emperor Moctezuma II.
Apache migration patterns
23 ViewsNovember 24, 2014
The Athabaskan people originally lived in what is now Alaska and Northern Canada. In the 1500s they began a slow migration South. The Athabaskan people we now know as Apaches migrated as far as southern Texas and Mexico.
Atsugewi Indians
26 ViewsNovember 19, 2014
The Atsugewi Indians are one of the eleven bands of California Indians that make up the Pit River Tribe. They were originally located in Northeastern California, south of the Pit River in what is now Lassen County and eastern Shasta County. Atsugewi is also one of the two Palaihnihan branches of the Hokan language.
November 19, 2014
The Southern Athabaskan speakers of California lived in Northwestern California, on the coast and inland, midway between San Francisco Bay and the Oregon border (Humboldt & northern Mendocino Counties). They included the Lassik , Mattole, Nongatl, Sinkyone, and Wailaki tribes.
September 14, 2014
There are 32 Indian families or stocks, who are related by languages in the United States.
Chiwere language
23 ViewsJuly 25, 2014
Language Classification:
Siouan -> Western Siouan -> Mississippi Valley -> Chiwere–Winnebago -> Chiwere
July 25, 2014
Truman Washington Dailey, (October 19, 1898 – December 16, 1996) also known as Mashi Manyi (“Soaring High”) and Sunge Hka (“White Horse”), was the last native speaker of the Otoe-Missouria dialect of Chiwere (Baxoje-Jiwere-Nyut’chi), a Native American language, and a Roadman in the Native American church.
Nooksack Place Names
22 ViewsJuly 12, 2014
The names remembered and recorded for places in the original Nooksack language, Lhéchalosem, tie the modern Nooksack Indian people to their traditional lands.
Navajo language
22 ViewsMarch 11, 2014
Navajo (Diné bizaad), pronounced Navaho, is an Athabaskan language of Na-Dené stock spoken in the southwestern United States. It is geographically and linguistically one of the Southern Athabaskan languages although the majority of Athabaskan languages are spoken in northwest Canada and Alaska. Navajo has more speakers than any other Native American language north of the […]
Extinct languages of North America
22 ViewsFebruary 10, 2014
Here is a list of North American languages that are now considered extinct or near extinct, along with the name of the last speaker and date of extinction, when known. An extinct language is a language that no longer has any fluent speakers, or that is no longer in current use.
Native American State Names
22 ViewsDecember 12, 2012
Most Americans have no concept of the origin history of their state or the state they live in and this includes the knowledge of the origins of the state name. Most of our state’s names have origins in Native American Languages. There are many debates on these origins as each name may have more than one language base as well as have bad interpretations from the European Languages of English, French, Spanish, Dutch, Russian and more.
Athabaskan Languages
26 Views
May 3, 2010
Athabaskan or Athabascan (also Dene, Athapascan, Athapaskan, or Athapaskes) is the name of a large group of indigenous peoples of North America, located in two main Southern and Northern groups in western North America, and of their language family. The Athabaskan family is the second largest family in North America in terms of number of languages and the number of speakers, following the Uto-Aztecan family which extends into Mexico. In terms of territory, only the Algic language family covers a larger area.
February 22, 2010
Here are a few words translated to English from the Quinault Language.
December 22, 2008
Here are the meanings of fifty tribal names in their own languages, cross indexed to the names they are known by today.
May 23, 2008
AUTHOR: Aaron Clark Grass-roots efforts to preserve and teach youngsters native languages are intensifying around the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia as about 40 indigenous tongues are in danger of disappearing within the next decade.
April 6, 2008
A remote population of a few hundred indigenous Siberians who live thousands of miles west of Alaska speak a language that appears to be an ancient relative of more than three dozen Native languages in North America, experts say.
A panel of respected linguists who met in Anchorage on Friday are hailing new research that links the Old World language of Ket, still spoken sparingly along the Yenisei River in western Siberia, and the sprawling New World family of Na-Dene languages — a broad grouping that encompasses the many Athabascan tribes in Alaska, along with the Tlingit and Eyak people, as well as Indian populations in western Canada and the American Southwest, including the Navajo and the Apache.
American indian place names
22 ViewsJanuary 7, 2008
About half of the states and many modern towns in the US got their names from American Indian words. The name of Kentucky comes from an Iroquoian word (Kentahten), which means “land of tomorrow.”
December 23, 2007
The Cherokee Nation will be offering a Cherokee language course online through the tribe’s web site beginning Jan. 7
December 9, 2007
Oklahoma had been a state for only two decades when Doris Jean Lamar was born in 1927. Her first spoken words were not English, but an American Indian language taught to her by grandparents. Today, Lamar is the last fluent speaker in the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes, a tribe of 2,300.
October 20, 2007
AUTHOR: David Melmer For some people, unless they have heard a word before, its proper pronunciation can be quite difficult. Such can be the case with languages that never had a written version but are now translated into printed form. For anyone who has studied a second language, the difficulty is learning when and how […]
July 14, 2007
The Alaska Native Language Center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks has published a new Athabascan dictionary.
April 30, 2007
Miyo Wahkohtowin Community Education Authority (MWCEA) and Dr. Earle Waugh Dir. Center for Culture & Health Family Medicine, University of Alberta (U of A) are partnering to develop a web based interactive First Nations language portal with dictionary and curriculum based resources to further the development for Cree language in Canada.
October 13, 2005
Region: Northeastern Wisconsin, on what was formerly the Menomini Reservation.
October 13, 2005
Region: Northeastern Kansas: Horton; central Oklahoma: McCloud, Jones; Texas: Nuevo Nacimiento. Also spoken in Mexico.
October 13, 2005
Region: 2 communities in Quebec and Labrador. Those in Kawawachikamach are about 10 km northeast of Schefferville in northeastern Quebec at the height of land (watershed). On December 15, 2002 most of the Mushuau Innu moved from Utshimassits (Davis Inlet) to Natuashish on the mainland. Natuashish is an isolated community in Labrador.
October 13, 2005
Region: 11 communities in Quebec and Labrador, from Lake St. John eastward along the Saguenay Valley to the north shore of the St. Lawrence River and Gulf of St. Lawrence eastward to St. Augustin, northward to the height of land at Schefferville and inland Labrador (Goose Bay, Lake Melville). Western Montagnais is in 4 communities: […]
October 13, 2005
Region: Far north Manitoba and Saskatchewan, inland southwest from Churchill, Manitoba into Saskatchewan.
October 13, 2005
Region: Ontario, along the coast of Hudson Bay and northern west coast of James Bay, and inland into Saskatchewan.
Navajo Code Talkers Dictionary
22 ViewsOctober 12, 2005
The Navajo Code Talkers’ Dictionary was declassified under Department of defense Directive 5200.9. Here it as revised on June 15, 1945.
October 12, 2005
Region: Southern tip of James Bay, Moosonee, Ontario. This community and surrounding area (Moose Factory, Ontario). Has speakers of Moose Cree, East Cree, and Swampy Cree in it.
October 12, 2005
Region: West central Quebec, east coast of lower Hudson Bay and James Bay, communities of Whapmagoostui, Chisasibi, Wemindji, and most people in Eastmain.