The following tables list 154 indigenous American languages which are still spoken in the United States, the number of speakers, and where the speakers are located. Table 1 arranges the languages alphabetically, while Table 2 arranges them according to number of speakers.
Table 1: Indigenous Languages Spoken in the United States (by
Language)
Speakers[2] | Language | Location |
20 | Abnaki-Penobscot | Maine [3] |
10 | Achumawi | California |
21 | Ahtena | Alaska |
256 | Alabama | Texas |
90 | Aleut | Alaska |
812 | Apache, Jicarilla | New Mexico |
18 | Apache, Kiowa | Oklahoma |
10 | Apache, Lipan | New Mexico |
1,800 | Apache, Mescalero-Chiricahua | New Mexico |
12,693 | Apache, Western | Arizona |
1,038 | Arapaho | Wyoming; Oklahoma |
90 | Arikara | North Dakota |
150 | Assiniboine | Montana [3] |
4 | Atsugewi | California |
1,062 | Blackfoot | Montana [5] |
141 | Caddo | Oklahoma |
35 | Cahuilla | California |
5 | Chehalis, Lower | Washington |
2 | Chehalis, Upper | Washington |
11,905 | Cherokee | Oklahoma; North Carolina |
5 | Chetco | Oregon |
1,721 | Cheyenne | Montana |
1,000 | Chickasaw | Oklahoma |
17 | Chinook Wawa | Oregon |
17,890 | Choctaw | Oklahoma |
5 | Clallam | Washington |
321 | Cocopa | Arizona [6] |
40 | Coeur D’Alene | Idaho |
39 | Columbia-Wenatchi | Washington |
854 | Comanche | Oklahoma |
1 | Coos | Oregon |
2 | Cowlitz | Washington |
1,070 | Cree, Western | Montana [5] |
4,280 | Crow | Montana |
9 | Cupeno | California |
20,355 | Dakota | Nebraska; Minnesota; North Dakota; South Dakota; Montana [3] |
40 | Degexit’an | Alaska |
1 | Eyak | Alaska |
10 | Gros Ventre | Montana |
365 | Gwich’in | Alaska |
138 | Haida | Alaska |
7 | Han | Alaska |
1,007 | Havasupai-Walapai-Yavapai | Arizona |
1,000 | Hawaiian | Hawaii |
100 | Hidatsa | North Dakota |
250 | Hocak/Winnebago | Nebraska |
12 | Holikachuk | Alaska |
5,264 | Hopi | Arizona; Utah; New Mexico |
8 | Hupa | California |
3,500 | Inuktitut, North Alaskan | Alaska |
4,000 | Inuktitut, Northwest Alaska | Alaska |
1,301 | Jemez | New Mexico |
1 | Kalapuya | Oregon |
200 | Kalispel-Pend Dóreille | Montana |
19 | Kansa | Oklahoma |
126 | Karok | California |
50 | Kashaya | California |
10 | Kato | California |
10 | Kawaiisu | California |
4,580 | Keres, Eastern | New Mexico |
3,390 | Keres, Western | New Mexico |
539 | Kikapoo | Kansas; Oklahoma; Texas [7] |
1,092 | Kiowa | Oklahoma |
88 | Klamath-Modoc | Oregon |
600 | Koasati | Louisiana; Texas |
300 | Koyukon | Alaska |
97 | Kumiai | California [6] |
40 | Kuskokwim, Upper | Alaska |
102 | Kutenai | Idaho; Montana [5] |
6,000 | Lakota | Nebraska; Minnesota; North Dakota; South Dakota; Montana |
43 | Luiseno | California |
60 | Lushootseed | Washington |
10 | Maidu, Northwest | California |
*10 | Makah | Washington |
887 | Malecite-Passamaquoddy | Maine [5] |
6 | Mandan | North Dakota |
181 | Maricopa | Arizona |
39 | Menomini | Wisconsin |
800 | Mesquakie | Iowa; Oklahoma; Kansas; Nebraska |
2,100 | Micmac | Boston; New York City [5] |
496 | Mikasuki | Florida |
5 | Miwok, Central Sierra | California |
1 | Miwok, Coast | California |
8 | Miwok, Lake | California |
10 | Miwok, Northern Sierra | California |
1 | Miwok, Plains | California |
10 | Miwok, Southern Sierra | California |
234 | Mohave | Arizona |
20 | Mono | California |
6,213 | Muskogee | Oklahoma; Alabama; Florida |
148,530 | Navajo | Arizona; Utah; New Mexico; Utah |
697 | Nez Perce | Idaho |
12 | Nisenan | California |
8,000 | Ojibwa, Eastern | Michigan [3] |
35,000 | Ojibwa, Western | Montana; Lake Superior; North Dakota [3] |
112 | Okangan | Washington |
85 | Omaha-Ponca | Nebraska; Oklahoma |
50 | Oneida | New York; Wisconsin |
15 | Onondaga | New York |
5 | Osage | Oklahoma |
2,000 | Paiute, Northern | Nevada; Oregon; California; Idaho |
20 | Panamint | California |
11,819 | Papago-Pima | Arizona [7] |
4 | Pawnee | Oklahoma |
40 | Pomo, Central | California |
1 | Pomo, Northeastern | California |
10 | Pomo, Southeastern | California |
40 | Pomo, Southern | California |
50 | Potawatomi | Michigan; Wisconsin; Kansas; Oklahoma |
34 | Quapaw | Oklahoma |
343 | Quechan | California |
6 | Quinault | Washington |
107 | Salish, Southern Puget Sound | Washington |
30 | Salish, Straits | Washington [3] |
200 | Seneca | New York; Oklahoma |
1 | Serrano | California |
12 | Shasta | California |
234 | Shawnee | Oklahoma |
2,284 | Shoshoni | Nevada; Idaho; Wyoming |
100 | Skagit | Washington |
10 | Snohomish | Washington |
50 | Spokane | Washington |
65 | Tanacross | Alaska |
75 | Tanaina | Alaska |
30 | Tanana, Lower | Alaska |
115 | Tanana, Upper | Alaska |
200 | Tenino | Oregon |
1,300 | Tewa | New Mexico; Arizona |
927 | Tiwa, Northern | New Mexico |
1,631 | Tiwa, Southern | New Mexico |
775 | Tlingit | Alaska |
5 | Tolowa | Oregon |
113 | Tsimshian | Alaska [5] |
6 | Tubatulabal | California |
10 | Tututni | Oregon |
50 | Umatilla | Oregon |
5 | Unami | Oklahoma; New Jersey; Delaware |
1,984 | Ute-Southern Paiute | Colorado; Utah; Arizona; Nevada; California |
100 | Walla Walla | Oregon |
69 | Wasco-Wishram | Oregon; Washington |
10 | Washo | California; Nevada |
10 | Wichita | Oklahoma |
10 | Wintu | California |
3,000 | Yakima | Washington |
406 | Yaqui | Arizona [6] |
78 | Yokuts | California |
12 | Yuchi | Oklahoma |
6 | Yuki | California |
10,000 | Yupik, Central | Alaska |
1,100 | Yupik, Central Siberian | Alaska [8] |
400 | Yupik, Pacific Gulf | Alaska |
10 | Yurok | California |
6,413 | Zuni | New Mexico |
361,978 | TOTAL |
Source: Adapted from B. Grimes (1996). Ethnologue: Languages of the
world. Dallas: SIL International. Updated February 1999 at www.sil.org/ethnologue.