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Encyclopedia > Mi'kmaq language
Míkmaq (Míkmawísimk)
Spoken in: Canada, United States 
Region: Nova Scotia, Gaspe Peninsula (Quebec), Newfoundland, northern Maine Boston (Massachusetts)
Total speakers: 8,500
Language family: Algic
 Algonquian
  Eastern Algonquian
   Míkmaq
Language codes
ISO 639-1: none
ISO 639-2: mic
ISO/DIS 639-3: mic 

The Mi'kmaq language (also spelled Míkmaq, Mi'gmaq, and Micmac) is an Eastern Algonquian language spoken by around 7,300 Mi'kmaq in Canada, and another 1,200 in United States, out of a total ethnic Mi'kmaq population of roughly 20,000. Motto: Munit Haec et Altera Vincit (Latin: One defends and the other conquers) Official languages English Capital Halifax Largest city Halifax Lieutenant-Governor Myra Freeman Premier John Hamm Premier-designate Rodney MacDonald (PC) Parliamentary representation  - House seat  - Senate seats 11 10 Area Total  â€¢ Land  â€¢ Water    (% of total)  Ranked 12th 55... The Gaspé Peninsula or just the Gaspé (la Gaspésie in French) is a North American peninsula on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River, in Quebec. ... Motto: Je me souviens (French: I remember) Official languages French Capital Quebec City Largest city Montreal Lieutenant-Governor Lise Thibault Premier Jean Charest (PLQ) Parliamentary representation  - House seat  - Senate seats 75 24 Area Total  â€¢ Land  â€¢ Water    (% of total)  Ranked 2nd 1,542,056 km² 1,183,128 km² 176,928... Map of Newfoundland Newfoundland (French: Terre-Neuve; Irish: Talamh an Éisc; Latin: Terra Nova) is a large island off the northeast coast of North America, and the most populous part of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. ... Official language(s) None Capital Augusta Largest city Portland Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 39th 86,542 km² 305 km 515 km 13. ... Nickname: City on a Hill, Beantown, The Hub (of the Solar System), Athens of America Motto: Official website: www. ... Official language(s) English Capital Boston Largest city Boston Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 44th 10,555 mi²; 27,360 km² 183 mi; 295 km 113 mi; 182 km 13. ... Current distribution of Human Language Families Most languages are known to belong to language families. ... The Algic languages are an indigenous language family of North America. ... Pre-contact distribution of Algonquian languages The Algonquian (also Algonkian) languages are a subfamily of Native American languages that includes most of the languages in the Algic language family (the two Algic languages that are not Algonquian are Wiyot and Yurok of northwestern California). ... The Eastern Algonquian languages are a subgroup of the larger Algonquian family, itself a member of the Algic family; prior to European contact, the family consisted of around 17 languages, which streched from Newfoundland south into North Carolina. ... ISO 639-1 is the first part of the ISO 639 international-standard language-code family. ... ISO 639-2:1998 Codes for the representation of names of languages — Part 2: Alpha-3 code Twenty-two of the languages have two three-letter codes: a code for bibliographic use (ISO 639-2/B) a code for terminological use (ISO 639-2/T). ... ISO 639-3 is in process of development as an international standard for language codes. ... The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is a system of phonetic notation devised by linguists to accurately and uniquely represent each of the wide variety of sounds (phones or phonemes) used in spoken human language. ... Phonetics (from the Greek word φωνή, phone = sound/voice) is the study of sounds (voice). ... Technical note: Due to technical limitations, some web browsers may not display some special characters in this article. ... The Eastern Algonquian languages are a subgroup of the larger Algonquian family, itself a member of the Algic family; prior to European contact, the family consisted of around 17 languages, which streched from Newfoundland south into North Carolina. ... The Mikmaq (also Míkmaq, Micmac, Migmaq) are a First Nations people indigenous to northeastern New England, Canadas Maritimes, and the Gaspé Peninsula of Quebec. ...

Contents


Sounds

The orthography presented here is the Francis-Smith Orthography, developed in 1974, and adopted as the official orthography of the Míkmaq Nation in 1980. <ɨ> represents a schwa, /ə/. <j> is a voiceless affricate, /ʧ/, and <q> a voiceless velar fricative, /x/. Vowels Near-close Close-mid Mid Open-mid Near-open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... An affricate is a consonant that begins like a stop (most often an alveovelar, such as [t] or [d]) and that doesnt have a release of its own, but opens directly into a fricative (or, in one language, into a trill). ... Velars are consonants articulated with the back part of the tongue (the dorsum) against the soft palate (the back part of the roof of the mouth, known also as the velum). ... Note: This page contains phonetic information presented in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) using Unicode. ...


Míkmaq voiceless plosives become allophonically voiced between vowels or when next to l, m, or n. Thus <Míkmaq> is actually pronounced [miːɡmax]. Phoneticians define phonation as use of the laryngeal system to generate an audible source of acoustic energy, i. ... A stop or plosive or occlusive is a consonant sound produced by stopping the airflow in the vocal tract. ... In phonetics, an allophone is one of several similar phones that belong to the same phoneme. ...


Vowels

Front Central Back
Short Long Short Long Short Long
Close i í u ú
Mid e é ɨ o ó
Open a á

Vowels Near-close Close-mid Mid Open-mid Near-open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... A central vowel is a type of vowel sound used in some spoken languages. ... A back vowel is a type of vowel sound used in some spoken languages. ... A close vowel is a type of vowel sound used in many spoken languages. ... A close-mid vowel is a type of vowel sound used in some spoken languages. ... An open vowel is a vowel sound of a type used in most spoken languages. ...

Consonants

Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar
Plosive p t k
Affricate j
Fricative s q
Nasal m n
Approximant w l y

Labials are consonants articulated either with both lips (bilabial articulation) or with the lower lip and the upper teeth (labiodental articulation). ... Alveolars are consonants articulated with the tip of the tongue against the alveolar ridge, the internal side of the upper gums (known as the alveoles of the upper teeth). ... Palatal consonants are consonants articulated with the middle or back part of the tongue raised against the hard palate (the middle part of the roof of the mouth). ... Velars are consonants articulated with the back part of the tongue (the dorsum) against the soft palate (the back part of the roof of the mouth, known also as the velum). ... A stop or plosive or occlusive is a consonant sound produced by stopping the airflow in the vocal tract. ... An affricate is a consonant that begins like a stop (most often an alveovelar, such as [t] or [d]) and that doesnt have a release of its own, but opens directly into a fricative (or, in one language, into a trill). ... Note: This page contains phonetic information presented in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) using Unicode. ... (adj. ... Approximants are speech sounds that could be regarded as intermediate between vowels and typical consonants. ...

Grammar

Writing System

Mi'kmaq is written using a Roman alphabet scheme devised by missionaries in the 19th century. However, it had long used Mi'kmaq hieroglyphic writing, a script of partially native origin. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... Mikmaq hieroglyphic writing was a pictographic writing scheme and memory aid used by Mikmaq people both before and after European contact. ...


External links


  Results from FactBites:
 
Facts for Kids: Micmac Indians (Micmacs, Mi'kmaq) (2119 words)
We encourage students and teachers to look through our main Mi'kmaq language and culture pages for in-depth information about the tribe, but here are our answers to the questions we are most often asked by children, with Micmac pictures and links we consider suitable for all ages.
The Mi'kmaq Nation was a member of the Wabanaki Confederacy that controlled northern New England and the Canadian Maritimes.
Mi'kmaq is a song-like language with complicated verbs.
Mi'kmaq Language and the Mi'kmaq Indian Tribe (Micmac Indians, Mikmaq, Mi'kmaw, Mikmaw, Mikmak) (810 words)
Language: The Mi'kmaq language, Míkmawísimk, is an Algonquian language spoken by 8000 Indians in the Canadian Maritimes (particularly Nova Scotia) and a few US communities.
Mi'kmaq is written alphabetically today, but in the past it was written in pictographs.
For their part, the Mi'kmaq people were staunch allies of the French in good times and bad, and if the tribe had not been devastated by smallpox and other European diseases, the history of Nova Scotia might have been written very differently.
  More results at FactBites »


 

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