Region:
Quebec, southeastward from James Bay, inland to the height of land (watershed) east of Lake Mistissini. Coastal communities of Waskaganish, some speakers in Eastmain. Inland, in Mistissini, Waswanipi, Nemaska, and Ouje-Bougoumo.
Alternate names:
James Bay Cree Southern Dialect, Eastern James Bay Cree Southern Dialect
Dialects:
Palatalized y-dialect within Cree-Montagnais-Naskapi language complex or dialect cluster. Sometimes classified as Montagnais.
Classification:
Algic -> Algonquian -> Central -> Cree-Montagnais-Naskapi -> East Cree, Southern
Population:
7,306 (1997 Quebec Ministere de la Sante et des Services Sociaux).
Language use:
Vigorous. All domains. Speakers also use English.
Language development:
Literacy rate in first language: 15% to 20%. Literacy rate in second language: 50%. Language of instruction in lower grades, taught as a subject in upper grades.