Western Abenaki

Western Abenaki (autonymously Aln8baôdwawôgan) is an Eastern Algonquian language of the Abenakian sub-branch, originally spoken across the Champlain Valley region of present-day Vermont, New Hampshire, and southern Quebec. The Abenaki were the indigenous inhabitants of these regions, and the western variety distinguishes itself from Eastern Abenaki (Penobscot, Maine) and the closely related Maliseet-Passamaquoddy. By the late 19th century, US assimilationist policies and Vermont eugenics laws had largely suppressed the Abenaki community, with most speakers shifting to French at Odanak, Quebec, where many Abenaki had taken refuge from US persecution. By the 1980s, only a handful of fluent speakers remained. The 1995 Day dictionary and Odanak community immersion programs have launched a vibrant heritage revival, particularly among young Abenaki at the Odanak community.