Blackfoot language

E264566

Blackfoot language is an Algonquian Indigenous language traditionally spoken by the Blackfoot (Niitsitapi) people of the northern Great Plains in what is now western Canada and the United States.

All labels observed (3)

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (49)

Predicate Object
instanceOf Algonquian language
Indigenous language of North America
Native American language
endangered language
closelyAssociatedWith Blackfoot cultural identity
ethnicGroup Blackfoot people
linked to: Blackfoot

Niitsitapi
glottocode siks1238
hasDialect Aamsskáápipikani dialect
Kainai dialect
Piikani dialect
Siksiká dialect
hasFeature animate–inanimate noun distinction
complex verb morphology
direct–inverse verbal marking
obviative grammatical category
person hierarchy system
rich aspect and mode system
switch-reference-like person marking
hasLinguisticResearch grammars and dictionaries compiled since the 19th century
hasPhonologicalFeature contrastive vowel length
few consonant phonemes compared to many vowels
pitch accent
historicalRegion Plains of Alberta
linked to: Plains of Canada

Plains of Montana
linked to: Montana Hi-Line
ISO639-2 bla
ISO639-3 bla
languageFamily Algonquian languages
morphologicalType polysynthetic language
nativeName Niitsi’powahsin
linked to: Niitsitapi

Siksikáí’powahsin
linked to: Siksikaitsitapi
region Northern Great Plains
linked to: Great Plains
revitalizationEffort immersion programs in Blackfoot communities
language classes in schools in Alberta
university-level courses in Canada and the United States
spokenIn Alberta
Canada
Montana
Saskatchewan
United States
status severely endangered in the United States
threatened
subfamily Plains Algonquian
usedBy Blackfoot Confederacy
linked to: Blackfoot
usedFor ceremonial purposes
oral storytelling
traditional songs
wordOrder flexible word order
writingSystem Latin script
linked to: Latin alphabet

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (16)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Blackfoot speaksLanguage Blackfoot language
Algic languages includes Blackfoot language
Canadian Aboriginal syllabics usedFor Blackfoot language
Cheyenne language closelyRelatedTo Blackfoot language
Arapaho language closelyRelatedTo Blackfoot language
Niitsitapi primaryLanguage Blackfoot language
Siksikaitsitapi hasLanguage Blackfoot language
Siksikaitsitapi speaks Blackfoot language
Piikani Nation traditionalLanguage Blackfoot language
Siksika 146 Reserve, Alberta hasPrimaryLanguage Siksika language
linked to: Blackfoot language
Treaty 7 language Blackfoot (oral interpretation)
linked to: Blackfoot language
Kainai Nation primaryLanguage Blackfoot language
Proto-Algonquian language commonAncestorOf Blackfoot language