Native to Canada Native speakers 5,900 (2011 census) Glottolog atik1240 | Region Quebec ISO 639-3 atj | |
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Language family Algic
Algonquian
Central
Cree
Atikamekw | ||
Atikamekw (also known as Attikamek, Tête de Boule, Attimewk, Atihkamekw, Atikamek), a variety of the Algonquian language, 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. The Atikamekw reflex of Proto-Algonquian liquid ("L" sound) *l is [ɾ] (spelled 'r'). The corresponding sound in other Cree dialects is [n], [j], [l], or [ð] (it is consistently one of these depending on the dialect). Another way in which Atikamekw is distinctive among dialects of Cree is in having many loanwords from the Anishinaabe language.
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Classification
Atikamekw is a dialect of Cree, and as such belongs to the Cree-Montagnais-Naskapi dialect continuum, which in turn is classified in the Central branch of the Algonquian languages of the Algic family of languages.
Consonants
The consonants of Atikamekw are listed below in the standard orthography and with IPA equivalents in brackets:
Vowels
The vowels of Atikamekw are listed below: