Region:
Ontario, along the coast of Hudson Bay and northern west coast of James Bay, and inland into Saskatchewan.
Alternate names:
York Cree, West Shore Cree, West Main Cree
Dialects:
Eastern Swampy Cree, Western Swampy Cree. Both nonpalatalized n-dialect and l-dialect within Cree-Montagnais-Naskapi language complex or dialect cluster.
Classification:
Algic -> Algonquian -> Central -> Cree-Montagnais-Naskapi ->Swampy Cree
Population:
4,500 (1982 SIL). All Cree first-language speakers in Canada 60,000 (1991 M. Dale Kinkade). Ethnic population: 5,000.
Language use:
Vigorous. Speakers also use English.
Language development:
Literacy rate in first language: 5% to 10%. Literacy rate in second language: 50% to 75%. Cree syllabary, western finals. Dictionary. Grammar. NT: 1976.