Abenaki language

Abenaki (Eastern: Alənαpαtəwéwαkan, Western: Alnôbaôdwawôgan), also known as Wôbanakiak, is an endangered Eastern Algonquian language of Quebec and the northern states of New England. The language has Eastern and Western forms which differ in vocabulary and phonology and are sometimes considered distinct languages.

Western Abenaki was spoken in New Hampshire, Vermont, north-western Massachusetts, and southern Quebec. Odanak, Quebec is a First Nations reserve located near the Saint-François River — these peoples were referred to as Saint Francis Indians by English writers after the 1700s. The few remaining speakers of Western Abenaki live predominantly in Odanak and the last fully fluent speaker, Cécile (Wawanolett) Joubert died in 2006. A revitalization effort was started in Odanak in 1994; however, as of 2004 younger generations are not learning the language and the remaining speakers are elderly, making Western Abenaki nearly extinct.

Eastern Abenaki languages are spoken by several peoples, including the Penobscot of what is now Maine. The last known natively fluent speaker of Penobscot Abenaki, Madeline Shay, died in 1993. However, several Penobscot elders still speak Penobscot, and there is an ongoing effort to preserve it and teach it in the local schools; much of the language was preserved by Frank Siebert. Other speakers of Eastern Abenaki included tribes such as the Amoscocongon who spoke the Arosagunticook dialect, and the Caniba, which are documented in French-language materials from the colonial period.