Algonquin (Al vgon kin or Al vgon kwin) or Algonkin, probably from a Micmac word meaning "at the place of spearing fish and eels from the bow of a canoe," is the name of a northeastern group of bands that also gave its name to an important language family. The original self-designation was Anishinabeg, or "true men." Principal Algonquin bands included the Weskarini (Algonquin proper), Abitibi, and Temiskaming.
Location In the early seventeenth century, Algonquins lived in the Ottawa Valley of Quebec and Ontario, particularly along the northern tributary rivers. Today they live on reserves in Ontario and Quebec and in regional cities and towns.
Population There were roughly 6,000 Algonquins in the early seventeenth century and about 8,000 in the mid-1990s. Of the roughly 7,300 Quebec Algonquins, about 4,300 live among nine communities.
Language Algonquins spoke an Algonquian language.
Historical Information
History Algonquins lived on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River from about 1550 to 1650. They began trading with the French in the early sixteenth century and later became important French allies. Trade frictions soon provoked a war with the Mohawk. The Algonquin won that skirmish with assistance provided by the French in order to maintain an important trade partner.
However, the French had made a powerful enemy in the Mohawk, and within a few decades the local military situation had been reversed, with the Iroquois now firmly in control. Meanwhile, the Huron had replaced the Algonquin as the key French trade partner. The Mohawk, needing to expand their trapping area, soon attacked again. The Algonquin were forced to abandon the upper St. Lawrence and, after about 1650, the Ottawa Valley. They returned in the 1660s when peace was reestablished. An epidemic in the 1670s left them further weakened.
During the late seventeenth century, some Algonquin bands merged with the Ottawa Indians. French trading posts were established, and missionaries became a permanent presence in their territory by the early eighteenth century. Some Algonquins traveled to the far west to trap for Canadian companies. After the final French defeat in 1763, the Algonquin became staunch British allies. Reserves for the group were created in the nineteenth century, when their lands were overrun by British settlers. The decline of the fur trade and of their hunting grounds (mainly owing to local logging operations) as well as a growing dependence on non-natives led many Algonquins to adopt a sedentary lifestyle.
Religion The people believed in a great creator spirit and a host of lesser spirits, both good and evil. Both shamans and hunters sought guardian spirits to help them with their work, which included interpreting dreams and healing the sick. After death, the spirits of hunters were thought to pursue the spirits of animals.
Government Small bands were composed of one or more clans with local chiefs. People smoked tobacco silently before council meetings.
Customs Algonquins entertained visitors with the annual Feast of the Dead, a dance with a war theme. When entertaining guests, the host did not eat. Clan descent as well as the inheritance of hunting territories may have been patrilineal. Bands tended to come together in summer and disperse in winter. People placed wooden rooflike structures with painted self-images at one end over the graves of high-status people. People were reluctant to mention their real names for fear of misuse by witches.
Dwellings People lived in cone-shaped, tipilike dwellings. They also built rectangular birch-bark hunting shelters.
Diet Men fished in both summer and winter (through holes cut in the ice). They hunted game such as moose, deer, caribou, and beaver. Agricultural crops played a small role in their diet. Some bands made maple sugar. Dog was eaten on occasion.
Key Technology Important material items included birch-bark containers sewn with spruce roots, basswood bags and mats, wooden cradleboards, bows and arrows, and double-headed drums.
Trade Algonquins imported fish nets and cornmeal from Hurons and also traded extensively with Iroquoian tribes. They traded animal pelts and porcupine quills to nearby groups in exchange for corn, tobacco, fishing gear, and wampum.
Notable Arts The people decorated many birch-bark items with the use of templates. Decorative styles included zigzag bands and floral motifs. Most designs were symmetrical. Southern bands decorated items with porcupine quillwork.
Transportation Men made birch-bark canoes, snowshoes, and toboggans.
Dress Dress varied according to location. Most clothing was made of buckskin or moose skin. Clothing included breechclouts, skirts, ponchos, leggings, robes, and moccasins; moccasins were often dyed black. Fur garments were added in cold weather. Both men and women tended to wear their hair long and braided.
War and Weapons Algonquins fought with bows and arrows, spears, and knives; they were early allies with the Huron. They dominated the Iroquois before the latter banded together in their great confederacy.
Contemporary Information
Government/Reservations The two Algonguin communities in Ontario are Golden Lake and Wahgoshig. Quebec communities include Abitibiwinni (90.5 hectares; 674 people in 1994, of whom 388 lived within the territory), Barriere Lake (28 hectares; 520 people in 1994, of whom 409 lived within the territory), Eagle Village-Kipewa (21.49 hectares; 494 people in 1994, of whom 170 lived within the territory), Kitcisakik (12.14 hectares; 302 people in 1994, of whom 272 lived within the territory), Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg (11,165.14 hectares; 2,094 people in 1994, of whom 1,313 lived within the territory), Lac Simon (275.01 hectares; 1,104 people in 1994, of whom 874 lived within the territory), Long Point (37.84 hectares; 558 people in 1994, of whom 273 lived within the territory), Temiscamigue (2,428.08 hectares; 1,241 people in 1994, of whom 473 lived within the territory), and Wolf Lake (Hunter’s Point; 4 hectares; 185 people in 1994, of whom 7 lived within the territory). Canadian communities are governed by band councils. Algonquin communities are also represented by the Anishinabe Algonquin Nation Council and the Algonquin Nation Programs and Services Secretariat.
Algonquins also live on Gibson Reserve, Ontario, primarily a home to Iroquois people.
Economy Some people raise gardens, and some serve as guides to visiting sportsmen. Some maintain a traditional hunting and trapping life. Important local industries include construction, forestry, and transportation. The Algonquin Development Association provides support for the initiation of economic projects.
Legal Status The Canadian communities listed under "Government/Reservations" are legally recognized tribal entities. Long Point and Kitcisakik do not have the status of a reserve. In 1994, a framework for negotiations was reached between the people of Golden Lake and provincial officials concerning a land claim for 3,400 square kilometers of land in Ontario.
Daily Life Many Algonquins have intermarried with non-natives and merged with non-native society. Still, at least 60 percent of Quebec Algonquins probably speak their ancestral language. The community of Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg has a primary and secondary school, a women’s shelter, a youth center, and other resources. The Matciteeia Society is an Algonquin cultural organization.
