Indigenous peoples in Quebec


Indigenous peoples in Quebec total eleven distinct ethnic groups. The one Inuit community and ten First Nations communities number 141,915 people and account for approximately two per cent of the population of Quebec, Canada.

First Nations

Algonquian

Abenaki

The Abenaki comprise two First Nations communities named the Odanak First Nation and the Wolinak First Nation. They are approximately 1,900 people on the two reserves.

Anishinaabeg

The Algonquin, who refer to themselves as Anishinaabeg, comprise nine First Nations who live in communities located in the Outaouais and Abitibi-Témiscamingue regions of Quebec. These First Nations communities are:
The Algonquin number approximately 12,000 people.

Atikamekw

The three Atikamekw bands live in four communities located in the Mauricie region of Quebec. These First Nations are:
  • Atikamekw of Opitciwan in Obedjiwan
  • Atikamekw of Manawan in Manawan
  • Wemotaci Atikamekw Council in Wemotaci and Coucoucache Indian Reserve No. 24
The Atikamek number approximately 4,900 people.

Cree

The Cree are the most populous nation in the Algonquian-language family. The majority live in Quebec and Ontario, but Cree also live in Manitoba, Alberta, and Saskatchewan. There are 10 Cree First Nations communities in northern Quebec. They are the:
The Cree of Quebec number approximately 25,000 people.

Malecite

The Malécite in Quebec comprise one First Nation, the Wolastoqiyik Wahsipekuk First Nation, whose members live in two communities located in the Bas-Saint-Laurent region of Quebec. The communities are Cacouna and Kataskomiq. They number approximately 570 people.

Mi'kmaq

The Mi'kmaq live in the Canadian Maritime provinces and the Quebec region of the Gaspé Peninsula. In Quebec, they number approximately 4,300 people and comprise three First Nations communities:
  • Gaspe First Nation in Gaspé
  • Gesgapegiag First Nation in Gesgapegiag
  • Listuguj Miꞌgmaq First Nation in Listuguj

    Innu

The Innu comprise nine First Nations in the Côte-Nord region of Quebec. These First Nations are:
The Innu number approximately 18,000 people.

Naskapi

The Naskapi live in northern Quebec. They comprise one First Nation, the Naskapi Nation of Kawawachikamach, based in Kawawachikamach. They number approximately 1,000 people.
The Naskapi are recognized as a distinct nation by the governments of Quebec and Canada; however, they are often considered to be Innu living in a remote area.
Their main language is Naskapi and their second language is English. The Naskapi committee is known as the NLMB.

Iroquoian

Wendat

The Wendat, members of the Huron-Wendat Nation, live in Wendake, a reserve enclosed within Quebec City. Their original homeland was in Ontario. They number about 2,800 people. Their original language was Wendat, in the Iroquoian-language family.

Mohawk

The Mohawk of Quebec number approximately 13,000 people. They comprise the three following First Nations, which were established at these locations in the colonial period:
are Indigenous Canadian peoples who were isolated from Europeans longer than other indigenous groups. This is because they live in a cold and remote part of the world called Inuit Nunangat, the large territory encompassing all Inuit regions in Canada. Nunavik, the Quebec part of Inuit Nunangat, is where all of Quebec's northern village municipalities (Municipalité de village nordique, abbreviated as VN are located and the residents are almost all Inuit and are known as Nunavimmiut.
There are 14 Inuit northern villages, all of which are coastal and regulated by the Kativik Regional Government:
In 2015, Quebec's Inuit numbered 12,129 people. As of 2023, 98% of Nunavik's residents speak Nunavimmiutitut, a local dialect of Inuktitut and part of the Eskaleut language family, as their native language. They also know English and French because they are taught these languages in school.

Demographics

Knowledge of language

Recognized rights

  • James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement
  • Charter of the French Language
  • Constitution of Canada
  • *Constitution Act, 1982
  • *Indigenous land claims in Canada
  • *Indigenous specific land claims in Canada
  • *Aboriginal land title in Canada
  • *Canadian Aboriginal law
  • *Canadian Indigenous law
  • *Monarchy of Canada and the Indigenous peoples of Canada
  • United Nations conventions, covenants, and treaties
  • *Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
  • Treaty of 1752
  • Murray Treaty of Longueuil
  • Royal Proclamation of 1763
  • Jay Treaty