Naskapi language

Naskapi
ᓇᔅᑲᐱ naskapi,
ᐃᔪᐤ ᐃᔨᒧᐅᓐ
iyuw iyimuun
Native toCanada
RegionSt'aschinuw
(Quebec, Labrador)
EthnicityNaskapi
Native speakers
1,230 (2016 census)
Eastern Cree syllabics
Language codes
ISO 639-3nsk
Glottolognask1242
Linguasphere62-ADA-ba
PeopleNaskapi Iyuw
ᓇᔅᑲᐱ ᐃᔪᐤ
LanguageNaskapi Iyuw Iyimuun
ᓇᔅᑲᐱ ᐃᔪᐤ ᐃᔨᒧᐅᓐ
CountrySt'aschinuw
ᒋᑦ ᐊᔅᒋᓄᐤ

Naskapi (also known as ᐃᔪᐤ ᐃᔨᒧᐅᓐ/Iyuw Iyimuun in the Naskapi language) is an Algonquian language spoken by the Naskapi in Quebec and Labrador, Canada. It is written in Eastern Cree syllabics.

The term Naskapi is chiefly used to refer to the language of the people living in the interior of Quebec and Labrador in or around Kawawachikamach, Quebec. Naskapi is a "y-dialect" that has many linguistic features in common with the Northern dialect of East Cree, and also shares many lexical items with the Innu language.

Although there is a much closer linguistic and cultural relationship between Naskapi and Innu than between Naskapi and other Cree language communities, Naskapi remains unique and distinct from all other language varieties in the Quebec-Labrador peninsula.