Cree language

Names

Endonyms are Nēhiyawēwin ᓀᐦᐃᔭᐍᐏᐣ (Plains Cree), Nīhithawīwin (Woods Cree), Nehirâmowin (Atikamekw), Nehlueun (Western Montagnais, Piyekwâkamî dialect), Ilnu-Aimûn (Western Montagnais, Betsiamites dialect), Innu-Aimûn (Eastern Montagnais), Iyiniu-Ayamiwin (Southern East Cree), Iyiyiu-Ayamiwin (Northern East Cree), Ililîmowin (Moose Cree), Inilîmowin (Eastern Swampy Cree), and Nēhinawēwin (Western Swampy Cree).

Origin and diffusion

Cree is believed to have begun as a dialect of the Proto-Algonquian language spoken 2,500 to 3,000 years ago in the original Algonquian homeland, an undetermined area thought to be near the Great Lakes. The speakers of the proto-Cree language are thought to have moved north, and diverged rather quickly into two different groups on each side of James Bay, after which time, the eastern group began to diverge into separate dialects, whereas the western grouping probably broke into distinct dialects much later. After this point it is very difficult to make definite statements about how different groups emerged and moved around, because there are no written works in the languages to compare, and descriptions by Europeans are not systematic; as well, Algonquian people have a tradition of bilingualism and even of outright adopting a new language from neighbours.

A traditional view among 20th century anthropologists and historians of the fur trade posits that the Western Woods Cree and the Plains Cree (and therefore their dialects) did not diverge from other Cree peoples before 1670, when the Cree expanded out of their homeland near James Bay because of access to European firearms. By contrast, James Smith of the Museum of the American Indian stated, in 1987, that the weight of archeological and linguistic evidence puts the Cree as far west as the Peace River Region of Alberta before European contact.

Dialect criteria

The Cree dialect continuum can be divided by many criteria. Dialects spoken in northern Ontario and the southern James Bay, Lanaudière, and Mauricie regions of 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 Quebec 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.

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/ 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 Montagnais 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

The Cree dialects can be broadly classified into nine groups. From west to east:

Phonology

This table is made to show all possible consonant phonemes that may be included in a Cree language.

Syntax

Like many Native American languages, Cree features a complex polysynthetic morphology and syntax. A common grammatical feature in Cree dialects, in terms of sentence structure, is non-regulated word order. Word order is not governed by a specific set of rules or structure; instead, “subjects and objects are expressed by means of inflection on the verb”. Subject, Verb, and Object (SVO) in a sentence can vary in order, for example, SVO, VOS, OVS, and SOV.

Obviation is also a key aspect of the Cree language(s). In a sense, the obviative can be defined as any third-person ranked lower on a hierarchy of discourse salience than some other (proximate) discourse-participant. “Obviative animate nouns, [in the Plains Cree dialect for instance], are marked by [a suffix] ending –a, and are used to refer to third persons who are more peripheral in the discourse than the proximate third person”. For example:

The suffix -a marks Susan as the obviative, or 'fourth' person, the person furthest away from the discourse.

Another distinct feature of the Cree language is what could be understood as gender, similar to the French language’s genders of male and female nouns. Cree defines nouns as being animate or inanimate. There is no distinct rule governing the classification of animacy or inanimacy, rather, it is learned through immersive language acquisition. 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 kiskinohamātowikamikw, "know.CAUS.APPLICATIVE.RECIPROCAL.place" or the "knowing-it-together-by-example place".

Writing systems

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 Latin script as well. Both writing systems represent the language phonetically. Cree is always written from left to right horizontally. The easternmost dialects are written using the Latin script exclusively. The dialects of Plains Cree, Woods Cree, and Swampy Cree use Western Cree syllabics and the dialects of East Cree, Moose Cree, and Naskapi use Eastern Cree syllabics. In this syllabic system, each symbol, which represents a consonant, can be written four ways, each direction representing its corresponding vowel. Some dialects of Cree have up to seven vowels, so additional diacritics are placed after the syllabic to represent the corresponding vowels. Finals represent stand-alone consonants.

The following tables show the syllabaries of Eastern and Western Cree dialects, respectively:

Speakers of various Cree dialects have begun creating dictionaries to serve their communities. Some projects, such as the Cree Language Resource Project (CLRP), are developing an online bilingual Cree dictionary for the Cree language.

Punctuation

Cree does not use the period (.) at the end of sentences when syllabics are used. Instead, either a full-stop glyph (᙮) or a double em-width space is used between words to signal the transition from one sentence to the next. In addition, Cree does not use the question mark (?). For instance, in the Plains Cree dialect, to indicate a question, the interrogative suffix -cî can be included in the sentence:

Additionally, other interrogatives (where, when, what, why, who) can be used.

Contact languages

Cree is also a component language in two contact languages, Michif and Bungi. Both languages were spoken by members of the Métis, the Voyageurs, and European settlers of Western Canada and parts of the Northern United States.

Michif is a mixed language which combines Cree with French. For the most part, Michif uses Cree verbs, question words, and demonstratives while using French nouns. Michif is unique to the Canadian prairie provinces as well as to North Dakota and Montana in the United States. Michif is still spoken in central Canada and in North Dakota.

Bungi is a dialect of Scottish English with substrate influences from Cree and Ojibwe. Some French words have also been incorporated into its lexicon. This language flourished at and around the Red River Settlement (modern day location of Winnipeg, Manitoba) by the mid to late 1800s. Bungi is now virtually extinct.

Many Cree words also became the basis for words in the Chinook Jargon trade language used until some point after contact with Europeans.

Cree has also been incorporated into two other mixed languages within Canada. The Oji-Cree language (also Severn Ojibwe), spoken in parts of Manitoba and western Ontario, is a mixed language of Cree and Ojibwe, and the Nehipwat language, which is a blending of Cree with Assiniboine. Nehipwat is found only in a few southern Saskatchewan reserves and is now nearing extinction. Nothing is known of its structure.

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. It is also one of two principal languages of the new regional government of Eeyou Istchee/Baie-James Territory in Northern Quebec, the other being French.

Study and teaching

In many areas, Cree is a community language spoken by large majorities and taught in schools through immersion and second-language programmes. 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.

In 2013, free Cree language electronic books for beginners became available for Alberta language teachers.