Ojibwe language
Ojibwe, also known as Ojibwa, Ojibway, Otchipwe, Ojibwemowin, or Anishinaabemowin, is an indigenous language of North America of the Algonquian language family. The language is characterized by a series of dialects that have local names and frequently local writing systems. There is no single dialect that is considered the most prestigious or most prominent, and no standard writing system that covers all dialects.
Dialects of Ojibwemowin are spoken in Canada, from southwestern Quebec, through Ontario, Manitoba and parts of Saskatchewan, with outlying communities in Alberta; and in the United States, from Michigan to Wisconsin and Minnesota, with a number of communities in North Dakota and Montana, as well as groups that were removed to Kansas and Oklahoma during the Indian Removal period. While there is some variation in the classification of its dialects, at least the following are recognized, from east to west: Algonquin, Eastern Ojibwe, Ottawa, Western Ojibwe, Oji-Cree, Northwestern Ojibwe, and Southwestern Ojibwe. Based upon contemporary field research, J. R. Valentine also recognizes several other dialects: Berens Ojibwe in northwestern Ontario, which he distinguishes from Northwestern Ojibwe; North of Superior; and Nipissing. The latter two cover approximately the same territory as Central Ojibwa, which he does not recognize.
The aggregated dialects of Ojibwemowin comprise the second most commonly spoken First Nations language in Canada, and the fourth most widely spoken in the United States or Canada behind Navajo, the Inuit languages and Cree.
Ojibwemowin is a relatively healthy indigenous language. The Waadookodaading Ojibwe Language Immersion School in Hayward, Wisconsin, teaches all classes to children in Ojibwe only. A similar program is also in place at Lowell Elementary School in Duluth, Minnesota.
Classification
The Algonquian language family, of which Ojibwemowin is itself a member, forms a branch of the Algic language family, other non-Algonquian Algic languages being Wiyot and Yurok. Ojibwe is sometimes described as a Central Algonquian language, along with Fox, Cree, Menominee, Miami-Illinois, Potawatomi, and Shawnee. Central Algonquian is a geographical term of convenience rather than a genetic subgroup, and its use does not indicate that the Central languages are more closely related to each other than to the other Algonquian languages.Exonyms and endonyms
The most general Indigenous designation for the language is 'speaking the native language', with varying spellings and pronunciations depending upon dialect. Some speakers use the term. The general term in Oji-Cree is, although is widely recognized by Severn speakers. Some speakers of Saulteaux Ojibwe refer to their language as. The Ottawa dialect is sometimes referred to as, although the general designation is, with the latter term also applied to or Eastern Ojibwe. Other local terms are listed in Ojibwe dialects. English terms include Ojibwe, with variants including Ojibwa and Ojibway. The related term Chippewa is more commonly employed in the United States and in southwestern Ontario among descendants of Ojibwe migrants from the United States.Relationship with Potawatomi
Ojibwe and Potawatomi are frequently viewed as being more closely related to each other than to other Algonquian languages. Ojibwe and Potawatomi have been proposed as likely candidates for forming a genetic subgroup within Proto-Algonquian, although the required research to ascertain the linguistic history and status of a hypothetical "Ojibwe–Potawatomi" subgroup has not yet been undertaken. A discussion of Algonquian family subgroups indicates that "Ojibwe–Potawatomi is another possibility that awaits investigation." In a proposed consensus classification of Algonquian languages, Goddard classifies Ojibwa and Potawatomi as "Ojibwayan", although no supporting evidence is adduced.The Central languages share a significant number of common features. These features can generally be attributed to diffusion of features through borrowing: "Extensive lexical, phonological, and perhaps grammatical borrowing—the diffusion of elements and features across language boundaries—appears to have been the major factor in giving the languages in the area of the Upper Great Lakes their generally similar cast, and it has not been possible to find any shared innovations substantial enough to require the postulation of a genetically distinct Central Algonquian subgroup."
The possibility that the proposed genetic subgrouping of Ojibwa and Potawatomi can also be accounted for as diffusion has also been raised: "The putative Ojibwa–Potawatomi subgroup is similarly open to question, but cannot be evaluated without more information on Potawatomi dialects."
History
Lingua franca
Several different Ojibwe dialects have functioned as a lingua franca or trade language in the circum–Great Lakes area, particularly in interactions with speakers of other Algonquian languages. Documentation of such usage dates from the 18th and 19th centuries, but earlier use is likely, with reports as early as 1703 suggesting that Ojibwe was used by different groups from the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to Lake Winnipeg, and from as far south as Ohio to Hudson Bay.Documentation from the 17th century indicates that the Wyandot language, one of the Iroquoian languages, was also used as a trade language east of the Great Lakes by speakers of the Nipissing and Algonquin dialects of Ojibwe, and also by other groups south of the Great Lakes, including the Winnebago and by a group of unknown affiliation identified only as "Assistaeronon". The political decline of the Hurons in the 18th century and the ascendancy of Ojibwe-speaking groups including the Ottawa led to the replacement of Huron as a lingua franca.
In the area east of Georgian Bay, the Nipissing dialect was a trade language. In the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, the eastern end of the Upper Peninsula, the area between Lake Erie and Lake Huron, and along the north shore of Georgian Bay, the Ottawa dialect served as a trade language. In the area south of Lake Superior and west of Lake Michigan Southwestern Ojibwe was the trade language. A widespread pattern of asymmetrical bilingualism is found in the area south of the Great Lakes in which speakers of Potawatomi or Menominee, both Algonquian languages, also spoke Ojibwe, but Ojibwe speakers did not speak the other languages. It is known that some speakers of Menominee also speak Ojibwe and that the pattern persisted into the 20th century. Similarly, bilingualism in Ojibwe is still common among Potawatomis who speak Potawatomi.
Reports from traders and travellers as early as 1744 indicate that speakers of Menominee, another Algonquian language, used Ojibwe as a lingua franca. Other reports from the 18th century and the early 19th century indicate that speakers of the unrelated Siouan language Ho-Chunk also used Ojibwe when dealing with Europeans and others. Other reports indicate that agents of the American government at Green Bay, Wisconsin, spoke Ojibwe in their interactions with Menominee, with other reports indicating that "the Chippewa, Menominee, Ottawa, Potawatomi, Sac, and Fox tribes used Ojibwe in intertribal communication...." Some reports indicate that farther west, speakers of non-Algonquian languages such as Ho-Chunk, Iowa, and Pawnee spoke Ojibwe as an "acquired language".
U.S. government attempt to erase native language
In the late 19th century, the American federal Native American boarding school initiative which forced Native American children to attend government-run boarding schools in an attempt to "acculturate" them into American society. Often far from their home communities, these schools attempted to remove any ties children had to their native culture and to limit their ability to visit home. Students were forced to speak English, cut their hair, dress in uniform, practise Christianity, and learn about European culture and history.Although the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 mandated the phasing-out of the Native American boarding school program, the practice of sending youth to these institutions continued into the 1960s and 1970s. Because children were forced to live away from their home communities, many never had the opportunity to hear and use their native language. This government assimilation effort caused widespread loss of language and culture among indigenous communities, including the Ojibwe people.
Language revitalization
With the remaining population of native speakers declining as older generations pass away, many historians consider now an important point in the language's history that will determine if it will proliferate or become extinct. Ojibwe historian Anton Treuer estimates that there are about 1,000 speakers of Ojibwe left in the United States, most residing in Minnesota on the Red Lake Indian Reservation or in Mille Lacs region. Teacher of the language Keller Paap approximates that most fluent speakers in the United States are over 70 years old, making exposure to spoken Ojibwemowin limited in many communities.Ojibwe educators and scholars across the region are working with the remaining elders who speak Ojibwemowin, known as the First Speakers, so as to document and learn the language in hopes to preserve it and pass it on to the next generation of speakers. In recent years, historian and Ojibwe professor Anton Treuer has been recording stories told by about 50 different Ojibwe elders in their native language so as to preserve both the language and pieces of knowledge and history. Alongside his current mentor, a Ponemah elder named Eugene Stillday, he writes the recorded stories in both Ojibwe and translated English.
As of the late 2010s, there has been more of a push toward bringing the Ojibwe language back into more common use, through language classes and programs sponsored by universities, sometimes available to non-students, which are essential to passing on the Ojibwe language. These courses mainly target adults and young adults; however, there are many resources for all age groups, including online games which provide domains for online language use. In the 1980s, The Northern Native-Languages Project was introduced in Ontario to get Indigenous languages such as Ojibwe, to be taught in schools. Years later, the first curriculum was established for the program and it was known as Native Languages 1987. There has also been an increase in published children's literature. The increase in materials published in Ojibwe is essential to increasing the number of speakers. Language revitalization through Ojibwe frameworks also allows for cultural concepts to be conveyed through language.
A 2014 study has indicated that learning Indigenous languages such as Ojibwe in school helps in learning the language and language structure; however, it does not help grow the use of the language outside of a school setting. The most effective way of promoting language is being surrounded by the language, especially in a familial setting. This is difficult to replicate in schools, which is why speaking Ojibwe with family and in one's home life is important in growing language revitalization.
Research has been done in Ojibwe communities to prove the important role language revitalization has in treating health concerns. The use of language connects a community through shared views and supports the well-being of said community. Researchers found that language and the notion of culture were intertwined together instead of being separate concepts, and the people who regularly practiced their language and culture were often associated with more positive health outcomes, particularly for psychological health and mental well-being.
An "Ojibway Language and People" app is an open-source app available for iOS devices. The Ojibwe People's Dictionary is an online language resource created in collaboration with the University of Minnesota. It is an accessible system that allows users to search in English or Ojibwe and includes voice recordings for many of the 17 000 entries in the collection. In 2022 the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe announced a partnership with Rosetta Stone to preserve the Ojibwe language and the Mille Lacs dialect through the latter's Endangered Languages Program. As of 2025 three levels of language learning are available.