Indigenous Peoples of the World

Innu

The Innu are the indigenous inhabitants of an area they refer to as Nitassinan, which comprises most of what non-First Nations Canadians refer to as northeastern Quebec and Labrador. Their population in 2003 includes about 18,000 people, of which 15,000 live in Quebec.

Their ancestors were known to have lived on these lands as hunter-gatherers for several thousand years, living in tents made of animal skins. Their subsistence activities were historically centred on hunting and trapping caribou, moose, deer and small game. Some coastal clans also practised agriculture, fished, and managed maple sugarbush. Their language, Innu-aimun or Montagnais, is spoken throughout Nitassinan, with certain dialect differences. Innu-aimun is related to the language spoken by the Cree of the James Bay region of Quebec and Ontario.

Adapted from Wikipedia’s article on the Innu People

Archive

Plan Nord Be Dammed! Innu reject Quebec government’s “North for all” plan

SEPT-ÎLES, QC—Marie Louise Andre Mackenzie is an 86-year-old elder from the tiny town of Schefferville, Quebec. With deep and... Read More

Quebec Police Dismantle Innu Blockade Against Controversial Hydro Complex

Quebec provincial police went on the march last Friday to dismantle a blockade that a group of Innu citizens... Read More

Indigenous Sovereignty Week – November 14-20, 2011

Defenders of the Land is once again calling all organizers for Indigenous Sovereignty Week! Now its third year running,... Read More

Russell Diabo on Canada’s War on First Nations

Russell Diabo, a member of the Mohawk Nation at Kahnawake, talks about “Canada’s War on First Nations”. This talk... Read More

Underreported Struggles #44, November 2010

In this month’s Underreported Struggles:Mapuche prisoners resume their hunger strike; Police in Argentina attack Toba protesters, killing two; Congress... Read More

Innu block access to mining projects on their territory

Innu communities are blocking access to two mining projects in northeastern Quebec and western Labrador in an attempt to... Read More

Underreported Struggles #32, November 2009

In this month’s Underreported Struggles: Chile’s Supreme Court Upholds Indigenous Water Rights; Tzotzil overtake UN office in Chiapas, Mexico;... Read More

Underreported Struggles #15, June 2008

A Canadian court paves the way to reclassify 16 lakes as mine waste dumps; The US Supreme court issues... Read More

Urgent: Innu People Threatened with Evictions

Following a lawsuit filed by dozens of Innu seeking to establish title to their traditional lands, the provincial government... Read More

India – Innu Reaches out to Jarawa

Survival At Stake by George Rich, Innu Nation published on www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com The Jarawa tribe of the Andaman Islands has... Read More

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