Everything about Cree Language totally explained
Cree (also known as Cree-Montagnais, Cree-Montagnais-Naskapi) is the name for a group of closely-related
Algonquian languages spoken by approximately 117,000 people across
Canada, from
the Northwest Territories to
Labrador, making it by far the most spoken
aboriginal language in Canada.
Dialect criteria
The Cree
dialect continuum can be divided by many criteria. Dialects spoken from northern
Ontario and coastal north-western
Quebec make a distinct difference between /ʃ/ (
sh as in
she) and /s/, while those to the west (where both are pronounced /s/) and east (where both are pronounced either /ʃ/ or /h/) do not. In several dialects, including northern
Plains Cree and Woods Cree, the long vowels /eː/ and /iː/ have merged into a single vowel, /iː/. In the Québec communities of
Chisasibi,
Whapmagoostui, and
Kawawachikamach, the long vowel /eː/ has merged with /aː/.
However, the most transparent phonological variation between different Cree dialects are the reflexes of
Proto-Algonquian *l in the modern dialects, as shown below:
The Plains Cree, speakers of the
y dialect, refer to their language as
nēhiyawēwin, whereas Woods Cree speakers say
nīhithawīwin, and Swampy Cree speakers say
nēhinawēwin. This is similar to the
alternation in the
Siouan languages Dakota,
Nakota, and
Lakota.
Another important phonological variation among the Cree dialects involves the
palatalisation of Proto-Algonquian
*k: East of the Ontario-Quebec border (except for Atikamekw), Proto-Algonquian *k has changed into /tʃ/ or /ts/ (
ch as in
cheese and
ts as in Wa
tson) before front vowels. See the table above for examples in the *kīla column.
Very often the Cree dialect continuum is divided into two languages: Cree and Montagnais. Cree includes all dialects which have not undergone the *k -> /tʃ/ sound change (BC–QC) while Montagnais encompasses the territory where this sound change has occurred (QC–NL). These labels are very useful from a linguistic perspective but are confusing as
East Cree then qualifies as Montagnais. For practical purposes, Cree usually covers the dialects which use syllabics as their orthography (including Atikamekw but excluding Kawawachikamach Naskapi), the term Montagais then applies to those dialects using the Latin script (excluding Atikamekw and including Kawawachikamach Naskapi). The term Naskapi typically refers to
Kawawachikamach (y-dialect) and
Natuashish (n-dialect).
Dialect groups
We can broadly classify the Cree dialects into nine groups. From west to east:
- Plains Cree (y-dialect)
- Woods Cree language or Woods/Rocky Cree (th-dialect)
- Swampy Cree (n-dialect) » Swampy Cree in turn has an eastern and a western dialect which differ in the use of the phoneme š. In the western dialect, š has merged with s.
- Moose Cree (l-dialect)
- James Bay Cree (y-dialect, sometimes called East Cree) » James Bay Cree has a northern and a southern dialect which differ in the number of vowel distinctions they make. The long vowels ē and ā have merged in the northern dialect but are distinct in the southern. Also, the southern dialect has lost the distinction between s and ʃ. Here, the southern dialect falls in line with the rest of the Montagnais groups where both phonemes have become ʃ. Nonetheless, the people from the two areas easily communicate.
- Atikamekw (r-dialect)
- Western Montagnais (l-dialect)
- Eastern Montagnais (n-dialect, also sometimes called Innu-aimun)
- Naskapi (y-dialect)
Phonology
This table is made to show all possible phonemes that may be included in a Cree language.
Syntax
Like many
Native American languages, Cree features a complex
polysynthetic morphology and syntax. A Cree word can be very long, and express something that takes a series of words in English. For example, the Plains Cree word for "school" is
kiskinohamātowikamik, "Know-by.hand-caus-applicative-reciprocal-place," "The knowing-it-together-by-example place".
Written Cree
Cree dialects, except for those spoken in eastern
Quebec and
Labrador, are traditionally written using
Cree syllabics, a variant of
Canadian Aboriginal syllabics, but can be written with the
Roman alphabet as well. The easternmost dialects are written using the
Roman alphabet exclusively.
Contact languages
Cree was also a component language in two contact languages unique to Western
Canada.
Michif is a
mixed language combining Cree and
French.
Bungee is a
pidgin combining Cree and
Scottish Gaelic elements on an English substrate. Both languages were spoken by
Métis voyageurs and settlers in
Western Canada. Michif is still spoken in central Canada and in
North Dakota. Many Cree words also became the basis for words in the
Chinook Jargon trade language used until some point after contact with Europeans.
Legal status
The social and legal status of Cree varies across Canada. Cree is one of the eleven official languages of the
Northwest Territories, but is only spoken by a small number of people there in the area around the town of
Fort Smith. In many areas, it's a vibrant community language still spoken by large majorities and taught in schools. In other areas, its use has declined dramatically. Cree is one of the least endangered aboriginal languages in North America, but is nonetheless at risk since it possesses little institutional support in most areas.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Cree Language'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://cree_language.totallyexplained.com">Cree language Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
