Wendat (Waⁿdat)

Wendat is an Iroquoian language formerly spoken in parts of Oklahoma in the USA and Quebec in Canada by the Wendat people. The language is also known as Wyandot, Waⁿdat or Wendet, and the people who speak it are also known as Wyandot, Wyandotte or Huron.

Although Wendat ceased to be used as a community language in the early 20th century, attempts are currently being made to revive it. The Wyandot Nation of Oklahoma offer pre-school and elementary school classes in the language. The Wendat Community of Quebec also offers adult and children's classes in the language at the village school in Wendake.

Wendat was documented by Marius Barbeau, an ethnographer, in Wyandotte in Oklahoma in 1911-1912, and a linguist called Craig Kopris used that information to compile a dictionary and grammar of the language.

Wendat alphabet and pronunciation

Wendat alphabet and pronunciation

This the the orthography for Wendat developed by Craig Kopris and based on the work of Marius Barbeau.

Download an alphabet chart for Wyandot (Excel)

Sample text (Lord's Prayer)

Squah-eh-steh yah-rohn-yih-yeh ih-stah reh, ooh-rah-meh tih sheh-shehn-dooh-tih ooh-tah-wah-teh-steh sah-reh-wah teh-zhooh-tih teh-kyooh tih yah-rohn-yih-yeh. Tah-wah-nohnt noh-mah-kehn-tah-teh hah-mehn-tih-yeh kyah-tahn-deh-tah-queh dah-wah-esh-roh'n-yeh nah-nehngk seh-sah-deh-yooh-hehnk sah-reh-zhah-kohn-dih, teh-zhooh-tih neh-hehn-dih tsoh-mah-deh-yoh hehs nah-nehngk wah-stah-tooh toh-mah squah-nyoh-deh teh-zhah-shooh-tah-quahn-deh-yeh, tah-owah-tah-teh-rohn-teh kah-oohf-keh, sah-ah-heh-sah-meh dooh-rah-meh, nan-nehngk deh yah-wih-shrah, nah-nehngk deh dooh-rah-meh, heh-yeh-hah-keh. Kohn-dih.

NB: this text is using a different spelling system to the alphabet chart above.

Source: http://www.language-museum.com/encyclopedia/w/wyandot.php

Sample of spoken Wendat

Information about Wendat | Numbers

Links

Information about the Wendat language
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wyandot_language
http://www.native-languages.org/wyandot.htm
http://www.wyandotte-nation.org/culture/language/

Wendat Language Lessons
http://cs.sou.edu/~harveyd/acorns/wyandotte/

Iroquoian languages

Cayuga, Cherokee, Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca, Tuscarora, Wendat

Languages written with the Latin alphabet

Page last modified: 23.04.21

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