An endangered language is a language that is at risk of falling out of use, generally because it has few surviving speakers. If it loses all of its native speakers, it becomes an extinct language. UNESCO defines four levels of language endangerment between "safe" (not endangered) and "extinct":[1] There are primarily eight languages that were spoken in Canada around 2010.
| Language | Users | Status | Comments | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Algonquin language/Anishinàbemiwin | Vulnerable | There are several dialects of the Algonquin language, generally grouped broadly as Northern Algonquin and Western Algonquin. | ||
| Aivilingmiutut language/Aivilik | Vulnerable | Inuktitut or Inuvialuktun dialect. | ||
| Assiniboine language (Canada) | 150 | Critically endangered | Also in the United States. | |
| Atikamekw language | 6,165 | Vulnerable | Divergent R-dialect of Western Cree. Closely related to Eastern Cree and Innu. | |
| Blackfoot language/Siksiká (Canada) | 4,915 | Definitely endangered | Southern Alberta, CA and Northern Montana, USA. | |
| Bungee language | 0–500 | Critically endangered | Possibly extinct. Cree-Ojibwe-Scots-Gaelic creole language. | |
| Cayuga language (Canada) | 61 | Critically endangered | Split into 2 distinct groups, in Ontario and New York. | |
| Central Ojibwe language | 8,000 | Vulnerable | ||
| Chilcotin language/Tsilhqotʹin | 860 | Severely endangered | ||
| Chipewyan language/Dene/Dënesųłiné | 11,325 | Vulnerable | Athapaskan language in Canadian Subarctic.[2] Not to be confused with Chippewa (Ojibwe). | |
| Comox-Sliammon language/ʔayajuθəm | 47 | Critically endangered | Mainland and Island dialects. Island dialect is extinct. | |
| Dakota language (Canada) | 290 | Critically endangered | Also in the United States. | |
| Dane-zaa language/Beaver | 220 | Definitely endangered | ||
| Dogrib language/Tłı̨chǫ | 1,735 | Definitely Endangered | ||
| Eastern Cree language/James Bay Cree | 13,000 | Vulnerable | Divided into 4 dialects. | |
| Eastern Ojibwe language/Ojibwa | Severely endangered | |||
| Gitxsan language | 1,020 | Severely endangered | ||
| Gwich'in language (Canada) | 560 | Severely endangered | Also spoken in Alaska. | |
| Haisla language | 240 | Critically endangered | ||
| Halkomelem language/Hul'qumi'num (Canada) | 100-260 | Severely endangered | Three distinct Dialects. Also in the United States. | |
| Han language (Canada) | 20 | Critically endangered | Also in Alaska. | |
| Heiltsuk language/Bella Bella | 60 | Critically endangered | ||
| Innu language/Eastern Montagnais | 10,075 | Vulnerable | ||
| Inuinnaqtun language | 1,310 | Definitely endangered | Dialect of Inuvialuktun or Inuktitut. | |
| Inuiuuk[3] | 47 | Critically endangered | Also known as Inuit Sign Language or Inuit Uukturausingit (IUR). | |
| Inupiaq language/Alaskan Inuit (Canada) | 2,144 | Severely endangered | Also in Alaska. | |
| Kaska language | 240 | Severely endangered | British Columbia and Yukon | |
| Kivallirmiutut language/Kivalliq | Vulnerable | Inuktitut or Inuvialuktun dialect. | ||
| Kutenai language | 345 | Severely endangered | Also use Ktunaxa Sign Language. Also in the United States. | |
| Kwak'wala language | 450 | Critically endangered | 4-5 distinct dialects. Also in the United States. | |
| Lakota language (Canada) | Critically endangered | 2,100 speakers in the United States. | ||
| Lillooet language/St̓át̓imcets | 315 | Severely endangered | ||
| Malecite-Passamaquoddy language (Canada) | 355 | Definitely endangered | Composed of 2 dialects. Also in the United States. | |
| Maritime Sign Language | Critically endangered | |||
| Maniwaki Algonquin language/Southern Anishinàbemiwin | 3,330[4] | Severely endangered | Speakers at Maniwaki consider their language to be Southern Algonquin, though linguistically it is a dialect of Nipissing Ojibwa. | |
| Michif language | 730 | Critically endangered | Cree-French creole language. Also in the United States. | |
| Mi'kmaq language/Migmaw(Canada) | 7,140 | Vulnerable | Also in the United States. | |
| Mohawk language/Kanienʼkéha (Canada) | 3,875 | Definitely endangered | Also in the United States. | |
| Moose Cree language/Ililîmowin | 3,000 | Vulnerable | L-dialect of Western Cree. | |
| Munsee language/Munsee Lenape/Ontario Delaware (Canada) | 2 | Critically endangered | Unami language in the United States . | |
| Naskapi language/Iyuw Iyimuun | 1,230 | Vulnerable | Eastern Cree dialect that shares features with Innu. | |
| Natsilingmiutut/Netsilik | Vulnerable | Dialect of Inuvialuktun. | ||
| Nisga'a language | 470-1,500 | Severely endangered | Nisga'a is very closely related to Gitxsan. | |
| Nootka language/Nuu-chah-nulth https://nuuchahnulth.org/ | 130 | Severely endangered | https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=nuu-chah-nulth, http://www.hesquiahtlanguage.org/ | |
| North Slavey language | 800 | Definitely endangered | ||
| Northern Haida language | Critically endangered | Divided into 2 dialects. Also in the United States. | ||
| Northern Tutchone language | Definitely endangered | |||
| Northwestern Ojibwe language | Vulnerable | |||
| Inuttitut/Nunatsiavummiutut/Nunatsiavut | Vulnerable | Inuktitut dialect. | ||
| Nuxalk language/Bella Coola | 17 | Critically endangered | ||
| Oji-Cree language/Severn Ojibwa | 13,630 | Vulnerable | ||
| Okanagan language | Definitely endangered | 5 dialects. Also in the United States. | ||
| Oneida language (Canada) | 47 | Critically endangered | Ontario, CA and Wisconsin, USA. | |
| Onondaga language (Canada) | 50 | Critically endangered | Also in the United States. | |
| Odawa language (Canada) | 360 | Severely endangered | Also in the United States. | |
| Plains Cree language | 34,000 | Vulnerable | Y-dialect of Western Cree. | |
| Plains Sign Talk | Critically Endangered | |||
| Potawatomi language (Canada) | Critically endangered | Also in the United States. | ||
| Qikiqtaaluk nigiani language/South Baffin dialect | Vulnerable | Inuktitut dialect. | ||
| Qikiqtaaluk uannangani language/North Baffin dialect | Vulnerable | Inuktitut dialect. | ||
| Rigolet Inuktitut language | 0-3 | Critically endangered | Inuktitut/Nunatsiavut/Inttitut dialect. | |
| Sarcee language/Tsuutʼina | 150 | Critically endangered | ||
| Saulteaux language/Nakawēmowin | 10,000 | Vulnerable | Also known as Western or Plains Ojibwe. | |
| Sechelt language | 7 | Critically endangered | ||
| Sekani language | 200 | Critically endangered | ||
| Seneca language (Canada) | Critically endangered | Also in the United States. | ||
| Shuswap language/Secwepemctsín | 200-1,190 | Definitely endangered | Divided into 2 dialects. | |
| Siglit dialect | Severely endangered | Inuvialuktun dialect. | ||
| South Slavey language | 1,000 | Definitely endangered | ||
| Southern Haida language | Critically endangered | Divided into 2 dialects: Skidegate and Ninstints(extinct). Also in Alaska. | ||
| Southern Tutchone language | Critically endangered | |||
| Squamish language/Sḵwx̱wú7mesh | 450 | Critically endangered | 1 native speaker left, 449 L2 learners. | |
| Stoney language/Nakota/Nakoda | 3,200 | Vulnerable | ||
| North Straits Salish language | 105 | Severely endangered | Also in the United States. Divided into 6 dialects. | |
| Swampy Cree language/Maskekon/Omaškêkowak | 1,805 | Vulnerable | N-dialect of Western Cree. | |
| Tahltan language | 45 | Critically endangered | ||
| Thompson language/Nlaka'pamuctsin | 130 | Severely endangered | ||
| Tlingit language (Canada) | 120 | Critically endangered | Also in the United States. | |
| Coast Tsimshian language/Sm'álgyax | 275 | Critically endangered | Also in Alaska. | |
| Upper Tanana language/Nabesna (Canada) | 100 | Critically endangered | Also in Alaska. | |
| Western Abenaki language/Wôbanakiôdwawôgan (Canada) | 14 | Critically endangered | Divided into 5 dialects. East Abenaki is extinct. Also in the United States. | |
| Woods Cree language/Bush Cree | 20,000 | Vulnerable | TH-dialect of Western Cree. Merged with Rock Cree. | |
There is a "phonological process", or patterns used to simplify speech[10] in the Oneida language that has been passed down for generations, this process is described as the loss of voicing in the vowel of the last syllable of a word. This process is vital to the preservation of the language, and has been changing among the speakers, such that some speakers have introduced a degree of voiced vowels in these final forms, which poses additional stress on the small population of speakers. The introduction in voicing the last syllable in words that typically are unvoiced changes the traditional morphology of the language, pushing the original dialect towards language death, especially since the majority of speakers are older in age.
The Blackfoot language features the loss of voicing in the last syllable of a word, which is typically inaudible. Certain inflections, or the use of inaudible vowels has been identified as "old Blackfoot" (traditional), and are not in frequent use by younger speakers. Similarly, a minority of Blackfoot speakers use the "soundless" suffixes, which is pushing the traditional language towards more extreme language endangerment and potentially language death.
The Chipewyan language exhibits morphological characteristics that are far more complex than the majority of European languages. This includes conditioning of tone and morphology of phonemes, as well as frequent contractions, elisions, metatheses, and consonantal substitutions. Chipewyan is mainly endangered due to its complex structure, which makes it difficult to decipher the morphological code, as well as the fact that the majority of the speakers are in their mid-late adulthood.
Assinibone is one of the language divisions out of five main language divisions within the Dakotan group of the Siouan family. The sound of this language differs from the other languages in the group because it merges voiceless stops with voiced stops. There are reports that syllabics to have been used by Assinibone speakers. (A written character to represent a syllable). The Assiniboine language is spread over 2 communities in Canada, and is mainly used by older adults.
There are about 8,000 speakers in the central Ojibwe language, and it has been spread over 16 communities in Canada. The language is spoken from Ontario Canada to Manitoba. It is also spoken in places from Michigan to Montana next to the Great Lakes which is the home of the Ojibwe people. The language today is spoken by people over the age of 70. The people of the Ojibwe language note that double vowels in their language are treated as standing for unit sounds, therefore they are alphabetized after corresponding single values.
There are about 6,000 speakers in the Northern Plain States of North Dakota and South Dakota. Most native speakers are in their mid-50s.[11] There is a growing interest to revitalize the language.[12] At the Red Cloud Indian school, there are immersion classes for children to teach the language. However, at the moment, there are no children on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation that are fluent in the language. Within the next ten years, there will be children fluent in Lakota.
There are about 20,000 native speakers, primarily in the North Dakota and South Dakota area, about 4,000 of which live in Minnesota.[13] Dakota Wicohon is an after school camp that helps children learn the language, since it is not taught in the government-run boarding schools for American Indian youth. To help preservation efforts, technology like phraselators come into play, allowing learners to type in the words they want or orally speak the word they want and the machine will find it for them.[14]
There are about 2,640 speakers of the language in the Canadian Northwest Territories from the Great Slave Lake to the Great Bear Lake. Dogrib phonology is rather intricate and is organized into 5 levels.[15] The first person to write a book in Dogrib was Herb Zimmerman, who translated the Bible into the language in 1981.[16] Unlike many other Native American languages, there are children who are fluent in the language.[17]
This was typically a First Nations speaking language, and mainly lived in northern British Columbia and some from southeast Yukon in Canada.[18] People who speak Kaska today still live within the British Columbia and Yukon Territory area. The speakers are elders, such as grandparents, and their children and grandchildren would speak English. First Nations have started work to re-create and preserve their heritage language.[19]
The number of people who speak the Ottawa dialect is unknown, though it is predicted to be around 13,000. Native communities received $5 million a year for 7 years (2007–2014) to help them in their efforts to preserve their languages and teach it to their children.[20] The language is written with Latin letters and is a dialect of the Ojibwe language. Many descendants of migrants now live in Kansas and Oklahoma.
There are roughly 3,200 people who speak Stoney in the Northern Plains and the Alberta province of Canada. Stoney has a Latin alphabet. The stress is one of the harder aspects about the language.[21] The Stoney Indian Language Project was created to help make a standard format of the Stoney language. The project created 6 books for adults and children, as well as a videotape for third graders.[22]
The Potawatomi Language is critically endangered because there are only 52 fluent speakers left surrounding the Great Lakes region in Michigan.[24] Within a decade, those who are fluent (the majority being the elderly) will soon be dead, causing the culture to die out with them, along with the knowledge of history that has been passed down from previous generations. English has become the predominant language spoken in homes due to the halt of parents speaking Potawatomi to children from 20 to more than 50 years ago. Currently there are no teachings of the language but there are revitalization efforts to bring back the language and the culture that could possibly be gone forever.
Tuscarora entails complex morphology dealing with the copying of words, roots, stems, and affixes.[26] There was a time where the Tuscarora language was spoken 'as the mother tongue,' used for all situations, (formal and informal) but now there are approximately only four to five remaining elders who are fluent in the language. All of the elders are around the ages of seventy to eighty years old, where a possible result is the extinction of the Tuscarora language.
The Native American Cayuga speaking people are located in Oklahoma and Ontario. With the splitting of the people into two geographical locations, they now begin to differ in terms of language usage, morphology and phonology. In the setting of Oklahoma, Cayuga has become influenced by other tribes and has to a certain extent, lost their original vocabulary.[27] Cayuga contains a pitch accent where the placement of it can be predicted by metrical structure and constraints on the structure of the syllables.[28]
The Upper Tanana Language originally was spoken in only five villages, each with a different dialect. Those villages were Beaver Creek, Scottie Creek, Northway, Nabesna, and Tetlin. Today, the language is only spoken by about 95 people, above the age of 50, in eastern interior Alaska. Depending on the dialect, the Upper Tanana Language has about six to seven phonemic vowels. the primary difference between the dialects is by the pitch of the tone. Also a major factor in the split of different dialects is that different dialects have different vowel inventories.[29]
Despite misinterpretation of studies which describe the phonetic inventory of Nootka, these studies do not suggest that its phonemic inventory is the main reason why the Nootka language may be severely endangered. A process known as glottalization is a key factor in being able to articulate certain sounds in the language, called ejective consonants. Though these sounds are not found in English, they are not linguistically rare. Many languages with a large body of speakers, including Arabic and Amharic, contain these sounds, an observation which immediately discredits this theory. It is clear that Nootka, like all Canadian aboriginal languages, is endangered due to social factors alone.[30]