Menominee

Menominee ( mih-NOM-ih-nee), also spelled Menomini (endonym: omāēqnomenēweqnaesen) is a critically endangered Algonquian language spoken by the Menominee people of what is now northern Wisconsin in the United States. The federally recognized tribe has been working to encourage revival of use of the language by intensive classes locally and partnerships with universities. Most of the fluent speakers are elderly. Many of the people use English as their first language.

The name of the tribe, and the language, derived from Oma͞eqnomenew, comes from the word for 'wild rice'. The tribe has gathered and cultivated this native food as a staple for millennia. The Ojibwa, their neighbors to the north who are one of the Anishinaabe peoples and also speak an Algonquian language, also use this term for them.

The language is called omāēqnomenēweqnaesen but also omāēqnomenēweqnaesewen or omāēqnomenēw kīketwan

From Wikipedia · Menominee language · CC BY-SA 4.0