Hardly a week goes by that we don't get email from at least one kid looking for information on the "Algonquian tribe." Adults, too, write to us trying to
do genealogical research on their "Algonkian" ancestors or learn the "Algonquian" heritage of their state. There's just one problem with this:
THERE IS NO ALGONQUIAN TRIBE! There is an Algonquin (or Algonkin) tribe, who live in Canada. But the word Algonquian (or Algonkian)
is a more general linguistic/anthropological term used to refer to not only the small Algonquin tribe but dozens of distinct Native American tribes
who speak languages that are related to each other. If you are interested in linguistics, we have a page with in-depth information about the
Algonkian languages and their relationships to each other. If you have a school report to
write on the culture of the "Algonquians," though, you may have trouble. Imagine you had a homework assignment on "Indo-European" clothing.
When you looked in the encyclopedia, you'd see that "Indo-Europeans" actually include the Dutch, the Spanish, the Russians, and the Indians in India.
What would you write about? The Spanish don't wear saris or wooden clogs, and the Indians don't wear fur hats or lace mantillas. In Siberia it gets to be
-40 degrees Fahrenheit, and in Bombay it can be hotter than 100 degrees and humid. You would have a hard time completing this assignment.
Native North America is no different. Algonquian tribes range from the Yurok in California to
the Powhatans in Virginia, from the
Cheyennes in the Great Plains to the
Naskapi Innu in frigid northern Labrador. Obviously, the Naskapi couldn't keep warm wearing
grass skirts like the Yurok, and the buffalo-hunting culture of the Cheyennes would have been useless to the Powhatans (no buffalo roamed the
forests of Virginia!) Making generalizations about "Algonquian Indians" is difficult at best.
So what are you going to do about this homework assignment of yours? Well, that depends. There are three things teachers could mean when they ask
you to do a report on Algonquian Indians:
1) Maybe your teacher wants you to report on Algonquian Indians from your area, but doesn't know those tribes' specific names. For example, the
Wecquaesgeek are often just referred to as "New York Algonquians" in textbooks. Especially on the east coast, there were many tribes who lost 75-90% of
their people to smallpox and other European diseases. In most cases the survivors of neighboring tribes merged together. This history can make their identities
confusing. If you know the location of the general group of Algonquians you are looking for, you can follow these links to learn more about the general
type of clothes and food and shelter they used.
The Long Island Algonquians are generally Mohegan Indians.
The New York Algonquians are generally Mahicans and
Munsee Delawares.
New England Algonquians include the Wampanoag in Massachusetts and the
Mohegans in Connecticut and Rhode Island. Maine Algonquians are
the Wabanaki tribes. Mid-Atlantic Algonquians include the
Lenni Lenape in New Jersey and Pennsylvania and the
Nanticokes in Delaware and Maryland. Virginia Algonquians are generally
Powhatan, and Carolina Algonquians are generally
Lumbee (Croatan). The Ohio Valley Algonquian Tribes are poorly known because most
of them were destroyed by smallpox epidemics and Iroquois attacks, but the Shawnee
survived and are probably representative.
There are many other Algonquian Indian tribes, including the Cree, the
Chippewa, and the Blackfoot,
but most non-natives know them by their real tribal names.
2) Maybe your teacher wants you to report on the Algonquin tribe. Anthropologists invented these two confusing terms, intending
"Algonquin" to refer to one specific language and "Algonquian" to refer to all the languages related to the Algonquin language (just as Germanic languages
are related to German.) The Algonquin tribe call themselves Anishinabe, and they live in Canada. If this is the tribe you are trying to learn about, we have a
lot of information about them on our Algonquin page.
3) Maybe your teacher just doesn't realize that the Algonquians are not a single tribe. It is an easy mistake for non-natives to make. If there is enough time
before your assignment is due, you can print this page out and talk to the teacher about it. Perhaps you can pick one Algonquian tribe to write
your report about. If there is not enough time, maybe you could write your report on Algonquian people who live in your home state (as listed above). Hopefully
that will narrow down your research enough that you can finish your project in time.
For your additional information, here are some general facts about Algonquian people, with our answers to the questions we are
most often asked by kids and Algonquian pictures and links we believe are suitable for all ages.
How do you pronounce "Algonquian?" What does it mean?
It's pronounced "al-GON-kee-un." (GON rhymes with "on.") It doesn't actually mean anything. Anthropologists invented this term to refer to tribes
who spoke a related group of languages.
What is the right way to spell "Algonquian"?
It can be spelled either "Algonquian" or "Algonkian." Either spelling is correct.
Are the Algonquians extinct?
Certainly not! There are more than half a million Native American people today belonging to Algonquian tribes. The reason you cannot find online information
about contemporary Algonquian people is that they rarely call themselves by this generic anthropological term. Try looking them up by their real tribal names.
There are a few extinct Algonquian tribes, including the
Beothuk and Wappinger tribes, but the vast majority of Algonquian tribes
still survive today.
Where do the Algonquian Indians live? Algonquian people live throughout the United States, from California to Maine, and throughout
southern Canada, from Alberta to Labrador. Here is an Algonquian map showing the original
homelands of various Algonquian peoples. (Remember that some tribes were forced to move after the Europeans arrived--there are many eastern Algonquian people who
live in Oklahoma now, for instance.)
What is Algonquian culture like? What tools and weapons did they use in the past?
Each Algonquian tribe had different cultures and traditions. Most Algonquian Indians made birchbark or dugout canoes for
transportation. Here is a picture comparing Algonquian canoe styles.
Northern Algonkian tribes used snowshoes and dogsleds to travel in winter. Here is a
picture of Cree snowshoes. Hunters and warriors usually used bows and arrows,
spears, and heavy wooden clubs. Algonkian Indian children had dolls and toys, such as a miniature bow and arrow or hand-held game.
Here are pictures of Algonquian games from the Mi'kmaq and
Maliseet tribes. Most Algonquian mothers traditionally carried their babies in cradleboards
on their backs--a custom many American parents have
adopted.
How were Algonquian tribes governed in the past? How are they governed today? Each tribe had its own form of government. Most Algonquian tribes
had some form of tribal council. Some tribes' councils were made up of the leaders of each village, others were made up of the leaders of each clan (large extended family), and still
others were made up of warriors who had distinguished themselves as battle. Usually a principal leader, or chief, presided over the council. In some tribes either men or women could
be council members and chiefs, and in others only men could do this. It depended on each tribe's culture. Some tribes didn't have chiefs at all--instead each village or clan had its own
leader and they were all equal in stature. Other tribes did not have councils and the ruler was more like a king than a chief. You should look at the fact pages for individual Algonquian
tribes to learn more about their governments.
What were Algonquian homes like? In most Algonquian tribes, each band lived in a village of small round buildings called wigwams.
Here are pictures of Algonquian wigwams and how they are built.
Algonquian tribes on the Great Plains used tepees for shelter instead. Some
northeastern Algonquians built longhouses like the Iroquois. The California Algonquians
lived in redwood-plank houses.
Some Algonkian villages, particularly in the east, were permanent and had palisades (fortified walls) around them. Other
Algonquian tribes were semi-nomadic and moved their houses frequently.
What was Algonquian clothing like?
Traditional clothes, headdresses, and hairstyles were different in every tribe, and Algonquian Indians could tell each other's tribal identity from their style of dress.
One article of clothing shared by all the Algonquian Indian tribes was
moccasins. Here are some pictures of
Lenape and
Chippewa moccasin styles.
Algonquian men generally wore breechcloths with leather leggings,
and Algonquian women wore skirts or dresses. In northern
Algonquian tribes, Indians also wore a shirt, tunic, or mantle, but in southern tribes and in California, they went shirtless. In colonial times, many Algonquians
adapted European fashions such as cloth blouses and jackets, decorating them with fancy beadwork. Here are some
of pictures of beaded Maliseet clothing. Today, members of most Algonquian tribes
wear their traditional clothing only at ceremonial events such as powwows or a wedding. Here is a link to our page on
Native American clothing in general, where you can find photographs and more links
about these traditional clothing styles.
What was Algonquian food like in the days before supermarkets?
Algonquian tribes in different climates ate different food. In New York state and south, most Algonquians were farming people, growing corn, beans, and squash.
North of New York state, the Algonquians were primarily hunter-gatherers, with the men chasing big game like elk and moose and the women
collecting vegetables and nuts. Western Algonkian tribes, like the Blackfoot, hunted the buffalo. Near the Great Lakes, Algonkian people cultivated wild rice.
Most Algonkian Indians also hunted small game like turkeys and rabbits and fished in the rivers and ocean.
What are Algonquian arts and crafts like?
Each tribe has its own artistic tradition. One art form most of the eastern Algonquian tribes shared was crafting
wampum out of white and purple shell beads to use as regalia, currency, and commemoration of important events.
Like European tapestries or Celtic tartans, the designs and pictures on wampum
often told a story or represented family affiliations. You can see some photographs and read some more details
about these art forms at our Native American art site.
Can you recommend a good book for me to read? There are many good books on the individual Algonquian tribes--visit our
tribal pages to see some of our book recommendations. In particular, Abenaki author Joseph Bruchac has written many excellent historical fiction books for kids of various ages, most of which are about Algonquian Indians.
We're especially partial to Dog People, a collection of short
stories about Indian children and their dogs. (In most Algonquian cultures, dogs were considered an important part of the family.)
On the Trail of Elder Brother is a good collection of
Algonquian legends by a Mi'kmaq writer and illustrator. If you are a K12 teacher looking for a good classroom book with information about many different
Algonquian tribes, we enthusiastically recommend Encyclopedia
of Native American Tribes for all ages and A Native American
Encyclopedia for high-school students. We *don't* recommend Native New Yorkers or
No Word For Time by Evan Pritchard, because these books confuse several distinct Indian nations
and contain too much incorrect information about Algonquian languages (see
here and
here for more detailed reviews.)
If you're looking for a book on the Algonquian tribes of New York there's a good one called
The Mohican World, though it would be hard reading for younger kids,
and a lively book on the early history of New York City in general, Unearthing
Gotham, which has a great chapter on the Algonquian people of the New York City area.
You can also browse through our reading list of Native American book recommendations.
How do I cite your website in my bibliography?
You will need to ask your teacher for the format he or she wants you to use. Our names are Laura Redish and
Orrin Lewis and the title of our site is Native Languages of the Americas. The site was first created in 1998 and last updated in 2007.
Thank you for your interest in the Algonquian Indians and their languages!
North American Indian tribes
Native American Names
Contacts and FAQ page
