Ojibwe, Ojibwa, Chippewa or Anishinaabemoowin is the third most commonly spoken Native language in Canada (after Cree and Inuktitut). It also has many speakers in the United States. It is an Algonquian language that is closely related to Cree, Potawatomi , Odawa , and Algonkin, and is spoken by the Anishinaabeg (Ojibwe) people.
Ojibwe has a syllabary developed by missionary James Evans around 1840, based on Pitman's shorthand. In the United States, the language is most often written phonemically with Roman characters. Syllabics are primarily used in Canada. The newest Roman character-based writing system is the Double Vowel system, devised by Charles Fiero. There is no standard orthography, however the Double Vowel system is gaining popularity among language teachers in the United States and Canada because of its ease of use. The following is the Double Vowel system:
| Orthography | IPA
|
| <a> | / /
|
| <aa> | /aː /
|
| <b> | / b /
|
| <ch> | /ʧ /
|
| <d> | / d /
|
| <e> | /eː /
|
| <g> | /ɡ /
|
| <h> | / h / (some dialects)
|
| <i> | /ɪ /
|
| <ii> | /iː /
|
| <j> | /ʤ /
|
| <k> | / k /
|
| <m> | / m /
|
| <n> | / n /
|
| <o> | /o / or /ʊ /
|
| <oo> | /oː / or /uː /
|
| <p> | / p /
|
| <s> | / s /
|
| <sh> | /ʃ /
|
| <t> | / t /
|
| <w> | /ɰ /
|
| <y> | / j /
|
| <z> | / z /
|
| <zh> | /ʒ /
|
| <'> | /ʔ /
|
Ojibwe obstruents do not have a true voicing contrast, but rather a lenis/fortis one. Thus, /t / and /d / should more properly be analyzed as /tː / and /d̥ /, although the lenis consonants are generally voiced intervocalically. <w> is a velar approximant, with very little labial closure, and is therefore /ɰ /.
External links
Ojibwe Language Society
Rand Valentine's introduction to Ojibwe
Grammar, lessons, and dictionaries
