| Mi'kmaq |
| Míkmawísimk |
| Spoken in |
Canada, United States |
| Region |
Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Gaspe Peninsula (Quebec), Newfoundland, northern Maine, Boston (Massachusetts) |
| Total speakers |
10,850 (8,750 in Canada, 2,100 in the United States) [1][2] |
| Language family |
Algic
|
| Language codes |
| ISO 639-1 |
None |
| ISO 639-2 |
mic |
| ISO 639-3 |
mic |
| Note: This page may contain IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. |
The Mi'kmaq language (spelled Micmac in English, and Míkmaq, Míkmaw or Mìgmao in Mi'kmaq) is an Eastern Algonquian language spoken by nearly 11,000 Mi'kmaq in Canada and the United States out of a total ethnic Mi'kmaq population of roughly 20,000.[1][2] The word Mi'kmaq is a plural word meaning 'my friends' (singular Míkm[3]); the adjectival form is Míkmaw.[4] The language's native name is Míkmawísimk [5] or Míkmwei[3] (in some dialects).
Writing system
Mi'kmaq-language stop sign in Elsipogtog First Nation
Mi'kmaq is written using a number of Roman alphabet schemes based on those devised by missionaries in the 19th century. Previously, the language was written in Mi'kmaq hieroglyphic writing, a script of partially-native origin. The Francis-Smith orthography used here was developed in 1974, and adopted as the official orthography of the Míkmaq Nation in 1980. It is the most widely-used orthography, used by Nova Scotian Mikmaq and by the Míkmaq Grand Council. It is quite similar to the "Lexicon" orthography, differing from it only in its use of the acute accent < ´ > instead of the colon < : > to mark vowel length. Two deviations from the Francis-Smith orthography are fairly widespread. The first is the omission of the acute accent or the fallback of writing it as an apostrophe < ' > or right single quote < ’ > immediately following the vowel. This practice is likely related[citation needed] to the use of typewriters or computer keyboards not suitably configured to enable the input of the acute-accented vowels. The second deviation is the replacement of the barred-i < ɨ > by the more common circumflex-i < î >. In Listuguj orthography, the apostrophe marks the long vowel, and the letter <g> is used instead of the letter <k>. The 19th-century Pacifique orthography omits <w> and <y>, using <o> and <i> for these. It also ignores vowel length. The 19th-century orthography of Silas Tertius Rand is also given in the table below; this orthography is more complex than the table suggests, particularly as far as vowel quantity and quality is concerned.
Mi'kmaq orthographies
| IPA |
a |
a: |
e |
e: |
i |
i: |
ə |
dʒ/tʃ |
g/k |
l |
m |
n |
o |
o: |
b/p |
x |
s |
d/t |
u |
u: |
w |
j |
| Francis-Smith |
a |
á |
e |
é |
i |
í |
ɨ |
j |
k |
l |
m |
n |
o |
ó |
p |
q |
s |
t |
u |
ú |
w |
y |
| Listuguj |
a |
a' |
e |
e' |
i |
i' |
' |
j |
g |
l |
m |
n |
o |
o' |
p |
q |
s |
t |
u |
u' |
w |
y |
| Lexicon |
a |
a: |
e |
e: |
i |
i: |
ɨ |
j |
k |
l |
m |
n |
o |
o: |
p |
q |
s |
t |
u |
u: |
w |
y |
| Pacifique |
a |
e |
i |
|
tj |
g |
l |
m |
n |
ô |
p |
|
s |
t |
o |
|
|
| Rand |
ă |
a â |
ĕ |
ā |
ĭ |
e |
ŭ |
ch |
c k |
l |
m |
n |
ŏ |
o ō |
b |
h |
s |
d t |
ŏŏ |
oo u |
w |
y |
Sounds
The orthography presented here is the Francis-Smith Orthography. <ɨ> represents a schwa, /ə/. <j> is a voiceless affricate, /t͡ʃ/, and <q> a voiceless velar fricative, /x/. A following apostrophe (properly a right single quote ’) is often used in place of the acute-accented vowel. Mi'kmaq voiceless plosives become allophonically voiced between vowels or when next to l, m, or n. Thus <Mi'kmaq> is pronounced [miːɡmax].
Vowels
Consonants
The obstruents (p, t, k, kw, j, s, q, qw) are voiceless [p], [t], [k], [kʷ], [tʃ], [s], [x], [xʷ] initially or next to another obstruent, but voiced [b], [d], [ɡ], [ɡʷ], [dʒ], [z], [ɣ], [ɣʷ] between sonorants (vowels or the voiced consonants m, n, w, l, y).
Grammar
Notes
References
- Maillard, M. l'abbé, redigée et mise en ordre par Joseph M.Bellenger, ptre. Grammaire de la langue mikmaque. Nouvelle-York, Presse Cramoisy de J.M. Shea, 1864. Reprinted 2007: Toronto: Global Language Press, ISBN 1-897367-14-7
- Pacifique,Père. 1939. Leçons grammaticales théoriques et pratiques de la langue micmaque. Sainte-Anne de Restigouche, P.Q. Reprinted 2007: Toronto: Global Language Press, ISBN 1-897367-15-5
- Rand, Silas Tertius. 1875. First reading book in the Micmac language. Halifax: Nova Scotia Printing Company. Reprinted 2006: Vancouver: Global Language Press, ISBN 0-9738924-8-X
- Rand, Silas Tertius. 1888. Dictionary of the language of the Micmac Indians, who reside in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Cape Breton and Newfoundland. Halifax: Nova Scotia Printing Company. Reprinted 1994: New Delhi & Madras: Asian Educational Services, ISBN 81-206-0954-9
External links
