Original Voices
Language is more than what we use to communicate. It is our identity. It is our ancestry. It is our legacy.
Explore the many diverse Indigenous languages that exist across the country.
Produced by CBC Indigenous, Original Voices was launched as a celebration of the International Year of Indigenous Languages, a United Nations observance to raise awareness of the consequences of the endangerment of Indigenous languages across the world in 2019.
There are over 80 Indigenous languages across the country and while Original Voices currently features over 30 of them, this list will grow.
Who speaks what where?
The boundaries of dialects on our maps are informed by the work of Native Land to visually represent the diverse and numerous languages that exist across the country. To read more about their project and methods please consult their page.
The numbers of language speakers referenced in this project are approximate, gathered from census data, the First Peoples Cultural Council and language experts from the nations themselves.
Get in touch
We welcome all feedback and your story ideas for Original Voices. You can get in touch with us by emailing indigenous@cbc.ca.