View source for Innu

{{Short description|First Nation in the Labrador Peninsula}}
{{distinguish|Inuit}}
{{redirect|Montagnais}}
{{use mdy dates|date=June 2024}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=June 2024}}
{{For-multi|the language|Innu-aimun|other uses}}
{{more citations needed|date=March 2009}}
{{Infobox ethnic group
| group = Innu
| flag = 
| image = Davis Inlet 1903.jpg
| image_caption = Innu traders outside the [[Hudson's Bay Company]] trading post in [[Davis Inlet]], [[Newfoundland and Labrador]], 1903
| total = 28,960
| popplace = Canada
| total_ref = <ref name=Ipop>{{Cite web|url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/ipp-ppa/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&DGUID=2021A000011124&GENDER=1&AGE=1&RESIDENCE=1&HP=0&HH=0&SearchText=Canada |title=Indigenous Population Profile, 2021 Census of Population Profile table: Canada [Country] |publisher=[[Statistics Canada]]|website=www12.statcan.gc.ca|access-date=June 15, 2024|date=2023-06-08}}</ref>
| total_year = 2016 census
| rels = [[Christianity]], other
| langs = [[Innu-aimun]], [[Naskapi language|Naskapi]], English, French
| related = [[Cree]], [[Algonquin people]], [[Naskapi]], [[Atikamekw]]
}}
{{Infobox ethnonym|root=Innu, Ilnu / assi<br/>"person" / "land"|person= Innu / Ilnu|people= Innut / Innuat / Ilnuatsh|language= [[Innu-aimun]]|country= [[Nitassinan]]}}
The '''Innut''' ('People') -- singular: '''Innu'''/'''Ilnu''' ('man, person') -- formerly called '''Montagnais''' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|m|ɔː|n|t|ə|n|ˈ|j|ɛ}}; French for '[[Hill people|mountain people]]'), are the [[Indigenous peoples in Canada|Indigenous Canadians]] who inhabit northeastern [[Labrador]] in present-day [[Newfoundland and Labrador]] and some portions of [[Quebec]]. They refer to their traditional homeland as ''[[Nitassinan]]'' ('Our Land', ᓂᑕᔅᓯᓇᓐ) or ''Innu-assi'' ('Innu Land').

The ancestors of the modern [[First Nations in Canada|First Nations]] were known to have lived on these lands as [[hunter-gatherer]]s for many thousands of years. To support their seasonal hunting migrations, they created portable tents made of animal skins. Their subsistence activities were historically centred on hunting and trapping [[Reindeer|caribou]], [[moose]], [[deer]], and small game.

Their language, which changed over time from Old Montagnais to [[Innu language|Innu-aimun]] (popularly known since the French colonial era as Montagnais),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.innu-aimun.ca/modules.php?name=InnuHome&lang=english |title=Innu-Aimun - the language of the Innu (Montagnais)|archive-date=2011-09-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110930123457/http://www.innu-aimun.ca/modules.php?name=InnuHome&lang=english}}</ref> is spoken throughout Nitassinan, with certain dialect differences. It is part of the [[Cree language|Cree]]–Montagnais–[[Naskapi language|Naskapi]] [[dialect continuum]], and is unrelated to the [[Inuit languages]] of other nearby peoples.

The "Innu/Ilnu" consist of two regional tribal groups, with the [[Première Nation des Innus de Nutashkuan|Innus of Nutashkuan]] being the southernmost group and the [[Naskapi]] being the northernmost group. Both groups differ in dialect and partly also in their way of life and culture. These differences include:
* the ''Ilnu'', ''Nehilaw'' or "Western/Southern Montagnais" in the south, speak the ''"l"''-dialect (Ilnu-Aimun or Nenueun / Neːhlweːuːn), and 
* the ''Innu'' or "Eastern Montagnais" ("Central/Moisie Montagnais", "Eastern/Lower North Shore Montagnais", and "Labrador/North West River Montagnais") live further north; they speak the ''"n"''-dialect (Innu-Aimun)
Both groups are still called "Montagnais" in the official language of [[Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada]]. The Naskapi ("people beyond the horizon", ᓇᔅᑲᐱ), who live further north, also identify as Innu or ''Iyiyiw''.

Today, about 28,960<ref name=Ipop/> people of Innu origin live in various [[Indian settlement]]s and [[Indian reserves|reserves]] in Quebec and Labrador. To avoid confusion with the [[Inuit]], who belong to the [[Eskimo]]an peoples, today only the singular form "Innu/Ilnu" is used for the Innu, members of the large Cree-language family. The plural form of "'''Innut'''/'''Innuat'''/'''Ilnuatsh'''" has been abandoned.

==Montagnais, Naskapi or Innu==
{{unreferenced section|date=June 2014}}
[[File:Innu map.jpg|thumb|left|Lands traditionally inhabited by the Innu. [[Naskapi]] land is shown in yellow and Montagnais land in red]]
The people are frequently classified by the geography of their primary locations:
*the ''Neenoilno'', live along the north shore of the [[Gulf of St. Lawrence]], in Quebec; they have historically been referred to by Europeans as ''Montagnais'' (French for "[[Hill people|mountain people]]", English pronunciation: {{IPAc-en|ˌ|m|ɔː|n|t|ə|n|ˈ|j|eɪ}}),<ref>Rogers & Leacock (1981:169)</ref> or ''Innu proper'' (''Nehilaw'' and ''Ilniw'' – "people")
*The ''[[Naskapi]]'' (also known as ''Innu'' and ''Iyiyiw''), live farther north and are less numerous. The Innu recognize several distinctions among their people (e.g. Mushuau Innuat, Maskuanu, Uashau Innuat) based on different regional affiliations and speakers of various dialects of the Innu language.[[Image:Innus.png|thumb|Innu communities of Quebec and Labrador and the two Naskapi communities (''Kawawachikamach'' and ''Natuashish'')|alt=]]

The word ''Naskapi'' was first recorded by [[Canada (New France)|French colonists]] in the 17th century. They applied it to distant Innu groups who were beyond the reach of Catholic [[missionary]] influence. It was particularly applied to those people living in the lands that bordered [[Ungava Bay]] and the northern Labrador coast, near the [[Inuit]] communities of northern Quebec and northern Labrador. Gradually it came to refer to the people known today as the Naskapi First Nation.

The Naskapi are traditionally [[nomad]]ic peoples, in contrast with the more sedentary ''Montagnais'', who establish settled territories.

The ''Mushuau Innuat'' (plural), while related to the Naskapi, split off from the tribe in the 1900s. They were subject to a government relocation program at [[Davis Inlet]]. Some of the families of the Naskapi Nation of [[Kawawachikamach, Quebec|Kawawachikamach]] have close relatives in the [[Cree]] village of [[Whapmagoostui]], on the eastern shore of [[Hudson Bay]].

Since 1990, the Montagnais people have generally chosen to be officially referred to as the ''Innu'', which means ''human being'' in ''Innu-aimun''. The Naskapi have continued to use the word ''Naskapi''.

==Innu communities==
===Labrador communities===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! rowspan=2 |Peoples{{efn|Although Sheshatshiu and Natuashish are home to most of the province's Innu people, some also live in [[Labrador City]], [[Wabush]], [[Happy Valley-Goose Bay]], [[St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador|St. John's]], and elsewhere.<ref name=labradorinnu>{{cite web|url=http://www.innu.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=10&Itemid=7&lang=en|title=Innu Rights and Government in Labrador|first1=Jenny|last1=Higgins|date=2008|access-date=June 15, 2024|archive-date=June 8, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230608222104/http://www.innu.ca/|url-status=dead}}</ref>}}
! rowspan=2 |Population<br>(2024)
! rowspan=2 |[[Indian reserve|Reserve]] or<br>[[Indian settlement|Settlement]]
! rowspan=2 |On reserve<br>population (2024)
! colspan=3 |Reserve area
|-
! ha
! acre
! sq mi
|-
|[[Mushuau Innu First Nation]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Registered Population - Mushuau Innu First Nation|url=https://fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/fnp/Main/Search/FNRegPopulation.aspx?BAND_NUMBER=32&lang=eng |publisher=[[Government of Canada]]; [[Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada]]; Communications Branch|date=2024-05-03|access-date=June 15, 2024|website=fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca}}</ref><ref>{{FNINAC|RVDetail|09529|Natuashish 2|June 15, 2024}}</ref>
|align=right |1,210
|[[Natuashish|Natuashish 2]]{{efn|The residents were originally from [[Davis Inlet]], about {{cvt|15|km}} away, and relocated here in 2002.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Davis+Inlet+Innu+get+new+home-a030183252|title=Davis Inlet Innu get new home|access-date=June 15, 2024|publisher=Aboriginal Multi-Media Society of Alberta (AMMSA)|date=1996}}</ref>}}
|align=right |1,115
|{{cvt|4267.3|ha|km2 mi2|disp=table|2}}
|-
|[[Sheshatshiu Innu First Nation]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Registered Population - Sheshatshiu Innu First Nation|url=https://fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/fnp/Main/Search/FNRegPopulation.aspx?BAND_NUMBER=33&lang=eng |publisher=Government of Canada; Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada; Communications Branch|date=2024-05-03|access-date=June 15, 2024|website=fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca}}</ref><ref>{{FNINAC|RVDetail|09713|Sheshatshiu 3|June 15, 2024}}</ref>
|align=right |1,994
|[[Sheshatshiu]]
|align=right |1,773
|{{cvt|804|ha|km2 mi2|disp=table|2}}
|}

===Quebec communities===

==== Conseil tribal Mamit Innuat ====
About 3,700 members
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! rowspan=2 |Peoples
! rowspan=2 |Population<br>(2024)
! rowspan=2 |[[Indian reserve|Reserve]] or<br>[[Indian settlement|Settlement]]
! rowspan=2 |On reserve<br>population (2024)
! colspan=3 |Reserve area
|-
! ha
! acre
! sq mi
|-
|[[Innus of Ekuanitshit]]<ref name=":0">{{cite web|title=Registered Population - Les Innus de Ekuanitshit|url=https://fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/fnp/Main/Search/FNRegPopulation.aspx?BAND_NUMBER=82&lang=eng |publisher=Government of Canada; Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada; Communications Branch|date=2024-05-03|access-date=June 15, 2024|website=fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca}}</ref><ref>{{FNINAC|RVDetail|06137|Mingan|June 15, 2024}}</ref>
|align=right |732
|[[Mingan]]
|align=right |672
|{{cvt|3838|ha|km2 mi2|disp=table}}
|-
|[[Première Nation des Innus de Nutashkuan]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Registered Population - Première Nation des Innus de Nutashkuan|url=https://fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/fnp/Main/Search/FNRegPopulation.aspx?BAND_NUMBER=83&lang=eng |publisher=Government of Canada; Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada; Communications Branch|date=2024-05-03|access-date=June 15, 2024|website=fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca}}</ref><ref>{{FNINAC|RVDetail|06108|Nutashkuan|June 15, 2024}}</ref>
|align=right |1,274
|[[Nutashkuan]]
|align=right |1,148
|{{cvt|118.9|ha|km2 mi2|disp=table|2}}
|-
|[[Montagnais de Pakua Shipi]] (St-Augustin Indian Settlement)<ref>{{cite web|title=Registered Population - Montagnais de Pakua Shipi|url=https://fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/fnp/Main/Search/FNRegPopulation.aspx?BAND_NUMBER=88&lang=eng |publisher=Government of Canada; Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada; Communications Branch|date=2024-05-03|access-date=June 15, 2024|website=fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca}}</ref><ref>{{FNINAC|RVDetail|06139|St. Augustin Indian Settlement|June 15, 2024}}</ref>
|align=right |413
|[[Pakuashipi]]{{efn|Located within the [[Saint-Augustin, Côte-Nord, Quebec|Municipality of Saint-Augustin]]}}
|align=right |41
|{{cvt|0|ha|km2 mi2|disp=table}}
|-
|[[Montagnais de Unamen Shipu]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Registered Population - Montagnais de Pakua Shipi|url=https://fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/fnp/Main/Search/FNRegPopulation.aspx?BAND_NUMBER=84&lang=eng |publisher=Government of Canada; Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada; Communications Branch|date=2024-05-03|access-date=June 15, 2024|website=fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca}}</ref><ref>{{FNINAC|RVDetail|06109|Romaine 2|June 15, 2024}}</ref>
|align=right |1,286
|[[La Romaine, Quebec|Romaine 2]]{{efn|Located within the municipality of [[Côte-Nord-du-Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent]]}}
|align=right |1,135
|{{cvt|69.4|ha|km2 mi2|disp=table|2}}
|}

==== Conseil tribal Mamuitun====
Over 23,000 members
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! rowspan=2 |Peoples
! rowspan=2 |Population<br>(2024)
! rowspan=2 |[[Indian reserve|Reserve]] or<br>[[Indian settlement|Settlement]]
! rowspan=2 |On reserve<br>population (2024)
! colspan=3 |Reserve area
|-
! ha
! acre
! sq mi
|-
| rowspan="2" |[[Innu Nation of Matimekush-Lac John]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Registered Population - La Nation Innu Matimekush-Lac John|url=https://fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/fnp/Main/Search/FNRegPopulation.aspx?BAND_NUMBER=87&lang=eng |publisher=Government of Canada; Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada; Communications Branch|date=2024-05-03|access-date=June 15, 2024|website=fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca}}</ref><ref>{{FNINAC|RVDetail|06138|Lac John|June 15, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{FNINAC|RVDetail|06136|Matimekosh 3|June 15, 2024}}</ref>
|align=right rowspan="2" |1,065
|[[Lac-John]] 
|align=right rowspan="2" |3,621
| {{cvt|23.5|ha|km2 mi2|disp=table|2}}
|-
|[[Matimekosh|Matimekosh 3]]{{efn|Located within the town of [[Schefferville]]}}
|{{cvt|65.4|ha|km2 mi2|disp=table|2}}
|-
| rowspan="2" |[[Innu Takuaikan Uashat Mak Mani-Utenam]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Registered Population - Innu Takuaikan Uashat Mak Mani-Utenam|url=https://fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/fnp/Main/Search/FNRegPopulation.aspx?BAND_NUMBER=80&lang=eng |publisher=Government of Canada; Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada; Communications Branch|date=2024-05-03|access-date=June 15, 2024|website=fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca}}</ref><ref>{{FNINAC|RVDetail|06107|Maliotenam 27A|June 15, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{FNINAC|RVDetail|06106|Uashat 27|June 15, 2024}}</ref>
|align=right rowspan="2" |5,039
|[[Maliotenam|Maliotenam 27A]]
|align=right rowspan="2" |3,621
|{{cvt|527|ha|km2 mi2|disp=table|2}}
|-
|[[Uashat|Uashat 27]]
|{{cvt|210|ha|km2 mi2|disp=table|2}}
|-
|[[Innue Essipit]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Registered Population - Essipit|url=https://fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/fnp/Main/Search/FNRegPopulation.aspx?BAND_NUMBER=86&lang=eng |publisher=Government of Canada; Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada; Communications Branch|date=2024-05-03|access-date=June 15, 2024|website=fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca}}</ref><ref>{{FNINAC|RVDetail|06111|Innue Essipit|June 15, 2024}}</ref>
|align=right |2,032
|[[Essipit|Innue Essipit]]
|align=right |261
|{{cvt|86.5|ha|km2 mi2|disp=table|2}}
|-
|[[Pekuakamiulnuatsh First Nation]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Registered Population - Première Nation des Pekuakamiulnuatsht|url=https://fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/fnp/Main/Search/FNRegPopulation.aspx?BAND_NUMBER=76&lang=eng |publisher=Government of Canada; Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada; Communications Branch|date=2024-05-03|access-date=June 15, 2024|website=fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca}}</ref><ref>{{FNINAC|RVDetail|06101|Mashteuiatsh|June 15, 2024}}</ref>
|align=right |11,037
|[[Mashteuiatsh]]
|align=right |2,115
|{{cvt|1626.9|ha|km2 mi2|disp=table|2}}
|-
|[[Pessamit Innu Band]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Registered Population - Bande des Innus de Pessamit|url=https://fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/fnp/Main/Search/FNRegPopulation.aspx?BAND_NUMBER=85&lang=eng |publisher=Government of Canada; Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada; Communications Branch|date=2024-05-03|access-date=June 15, 2024|website=fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca}}</ref><ref>{{FNINAC|RVDetail|06110|Betsiamites|June 15, 2024}}</ref>
|align=right |4,185
|[[Pessamit|Betsiamites]] (Pessamit)
|align=right |2,849
|{{cvt|25205|ha|km2 mi2|disp=table|2}}
|}

====Kawawachikamach====
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! rowspan=2 |Peoples
! rowspan=2 |Population<br>(2024)
! rowspan=2 |[[Indian reserve|Reserve]] or<br>[[Indian settlement|Settlement]]
! rowspan=2 |On reserve<br>population (2024)
! colspan=3 |Reserve area
|-
! ha
! acre
! sq mi
|-
| [[Naskapi Nation of Kawawachikamach]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Registered Population - Naskapi Nation of Kawawachikamach|url=https://fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/fnp/Main/Search/FNRegPopulation.aspx?BAND_NUMBER=81&lang=eng |publisher=Government of Canada; Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada; Communications Branch|date=2024-05-03|access-date=June 15, 2024|website=fnp-ppn.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca}}</ref><ref>{{FNINAC|RVDetail|06085|Kawawachikamach|June 15, 2024}}</ref>
|align=right |817
|[[Kawawachikamach, Quebec|Kawawachikamach]]<br>([[Kawawachikamach (Naskapi village municipality)]])
|align=right |704
|{{cvt|0|ha|km2 mi2|disp=table}}
|}

==History==
{{More citations needed section|date=October 2024}}
[[File:HIND(1863) LABRADOR-EXP. p180 VIEW FROM THE OJIAPISITAGAN OR TOF OF THE RIDGE PORTAGE AT THE SUMMIT.jpg|thumb|Reindeer hunting in Labrador]]
The Innu were possibly the group identified in [[Greenlandic Norse]] by [[Norsemen]] as ''[[Skræling]]s''. They referred to [[Nitassinan]] as ''[[Markland]]''.

The Innu were historically allied with neighbouring [[Atikamekw]], [[Wolastoqiyik]] (Maliseet) and [[Algonquin people|Algonquin]] peoples against their enemies, the [[Algonquian languages|Algonquian-speaking]] [[Mi'kmaq]] and [[Iroquoian languages|Iroquoian-speaking]] Five Nations of the [[Iroquois]] Confederacy (known as ''Haudenosaunee''. During the [[Beaver Wars]] (1609–1701), the Iroquois repeatedly invaded the Innu territories from their homelands south of the [[Great Lakes]]. They took women and young males as captive slaves, and plundered their hunting grounds in search of more furs. Since these raids were made by the Iroquois with unprecedented brutality, the Innu themselves adopted the torment, torture, and cruelty of their enemies.

The Naskapi, on the other hand, usually had to confront the southward advancing Inuit in the east of the peninsula.

[[File:HIND(1863) LABRADOR-EXP. p378 ROMAN CATHOLIC PROCESSION OF MONTAGNAIS AND NASQUAPEES AT THE MISSION OF SEVEN ISLANDS.jpg|thumb|Roman Catholic procession of First Nations people in the Labrador peninsula]]

Innu [[oral tradition]] describes the original encounters of the Innu and the French explorers led by [[Samuel de Champlain]] as fraught with distrust. Neither group understood the language of the other, and the Innu were concerned about the motives of the French explorers.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Vincent|first=Sylvie|title=Aboriginality and Governance: A Multidisciplinary Approach|publisher=Theytus Books|year=2006|isbn=1894778243|editor-last=Christie|editor-first=Gordon|location=[[Penticton Indian Reserve]], [[British Columbia]]|pages=7–9|chapter=The Uepishtikueiau Narrative: The Arrival of the French at the site of Québec City according to Innu Oral Tradition}}</ref>

The French asked permission to settle on the Innu's coastal land, which the Innu called ''Uepishtikueiau''. This eventually developed as [[Quebec City]]. According to oral tradition, the Innu at first declined their request. The French demonstrated their ability to farm [[wheat]] on the land and promised they would share their bounty with the Innu in the future, which the Innu accepted.{{Sfn|Vincent|2006|p=10}}

Two distinct versions of the oral history describe the outcome. In the first, the French used gifts of farmed food and manufactured goods to encourage the Innu to become dependent on them. Then, the French changed it to a mercantile relationship: trading these items to the Innu in exchange for furs. When the nomadic Innu went inland for the winter, the French increased the size and population of their settlement considerably, eventually completely displacing the Innu.{{Sfn|Vincent|2006|p=12–15}}

The second, and more widespread, version of the oral history describes a more immediate conflict. In this version, the Innu taught the French how to survive in their traditional lands. Once the French had learned enough to survive on their own, they began to resent the Innu. The French began to attack the Innu, who retaliated in an attempt to reclaim their ancestral territory. The Innu had a disadvantage in numbers and weaponry, and eventually began to avoid the area rather than risk further defeat. During this conflict, the French colonists took many Innu women as wives. French women did not immigrate to New France in the early period.{{Sfn|Vincent|2006|p=15–17}}

French explorer Samuel de Champlain eventually became involved in the Innu's conflict with the Iroquois, who were ranging north from their traditional territory around the Great Lakes in present-day [[New York (state)|New York]] and Pennsylvania. On July 29, 1609, at [[Ticonderoga, New York|Ticonderoga]] or [[Crown Point, New York]], (historians are not sure which of these two places), Champlain and his party encountered a group of Iroquois, likely [[Mohawk people|Mohawk]], who were the easternmost tribe of the Five Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy. A battle began the next day. As two hundred Iroquois advanced on Champlain's position, a native guide pointed out the three enemy chiefs to the French. According to legend, Champlain fired his [[arquebus]] and killed two of the Mohawk chiefs with one shot; one of his men shot and killed the third. The Mohawk reportedly fled the scene. Although the French also traded extensively with the Mohawk and other Iroquois, and converted some to Catholicism, they also continued to have armed conflicts with them.

== Historical bands ==
The southern bands of the Montagnais-Naksapi were encountered by Europeans early in the seventeenth century while the northern ones, except for some on James Bay, were not well known until the nineteenth century.

The following are bands of the Montagnais-Naksapi in the 17th century:

* Bersimis, around the [[Betsiamites River|Bersimis River]]
* Chicoutimi, north of [[Chicoutimi]]
* Chisedec, around [[Sept-Îles, Quebec|Seven Islands]] and around the [[Moïse River|Moise River]]
* Escoumains, around the [[Escoumains River]]
* Godbout, around the [[Godbout River]]
* Mistassini, around [[Lake Mistassini]]
* Nichikun, around [[Nichikun Lake]]
* Ouchestigouetch, at the heads of [[Manikuagan River|Manikuagan]] and [[Caniapiscau River|Kaniapiskau Rivers]].
* Oumamiwek (or Ste. Marguerite), west of the [[Sainte-Marguerite River (Sept-Îles)|Ste. Marguerite River]]
* Papinachois, at the head of the [[Betsiamites River|Bersimis River]] and east of it
* Tadousac, west of the lower [[Saguenay River]]
By 1850, the Chisedec, Oumamiwek, and Papinachois had disappeared or been renamed, and many new bands in the north of Nitassinan were discovered:

* Barren Ground, on the middle course of the [[George River (Quebec)|George River]]
* Big River, around the [[Great Whale River|Great Whale]] and [[Fort George River]]s
* Davis Inlet, south of the Barren Ground band
* Eastmain, north of the [[Eastmain River]].
* Kaniapiskau, at the head of the [[Caniapiscau River|Kaniapiskau River]]
* Michikamau, around [[Michikamau Lake]]
* Mingan, on the [[Mingan River]]
* Musquaro (or Romaine), on the [[Olomanoshibo River]]
* Natashkwan, on the [[Natashkwan River]]
* Northwest River, north of [[Hamilton Inlet]] and on the [[North West River|Northwest River]]
* Petisikapau, in the country around [[Petisikapau Lake]]
* Rupert House, around [[Rupert Bay]] and the [[Rupert River]]
* St. Augustin, on the [[Saint-Augustin River|St. Augustin River]]
* Shelter Bay, around modern-day [[Shelter Bay, Quebec|Shelter Bay]]
* Ungava, southwest of the [[Ungava Bay]]
* Waswanipi, on the [[Waswanipi River]]
* White Whale River, between [[Lake Minto]] and [[Little Whale River]] and eastward to the [[Caniapiscau River|Kaniapiskau River]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Montagnais-Naskapi Indians of Canada |url=https://www.canadiangenealogy.net/indians/montagais_naskapi_indians.htm |access-date=2024-07-15 |website=www.canadiangenealogy.net}}</ref>

== Present status ==
The Innu of [[Labrador]] and those living on the north shore of the [[Gulf of St. Lawrence]] in the [[Canadian Shield]] region have never officially ceded their territory to Canada by way of treaty or other agreement. But, as European-Canadians began widespread forest and mining operations at the turn of the 20th century, the Innu became increasingly settled in coastal communities and in the interior of Quebec. The [[Government of Canada|Canadian]] and provincial governments, the [[Catholic Church|Catholic]], [[Moravian Church|Moravian]], and [[Anglicanism|Anglican]] churches, all encouraged the Innu to settle in more permanent, majority-style communities, in the belief that their lives would improve with this adaptation. This [[Cultural assimilation#Canada 1800s–1990s: Forced assimilation|coercive assimilation]] resulted in the Innu giving up some traditional activities (hunting, [[trapping]], fishing). Because of these social disruptions and the systemic disadvantages faced by Indigenous peoples, community life in the permanent settlements often became associated with high levels of [[substance abuse]], [[domestic violence]], and [[suicide]] among the Innu.

=== Labrador Innu organizations and land claims ===
In 1999, [[Survival International]] published a study of the Innu communities of Labrador. It assessed the adverse effects of the [[Forced displacement|Canadian government's relocating]] the people far from their ancestral lands and preventing them from practising their ancient way of life.<ref name="survival-international.org" />

The Innu people of Labrador formally organized the Naskapi Montagnais Innu Association in 1976 to protect their rights, lands, and way of life against industrialization and other outside forces. The organization changed its name to the Innu Nation in 1990 and functions today as the governing body of the Labrador Innu. The group has won recognition for its members as [[Indian Register|status Indians]] under Canada's ''[[Indian Act]]'' in 2002 and is currently involved in land claim and self-governance negotiations with the federal and provincial governments.<ref name=labradorinnu/>

In addition to the Innu Nation, residents at both [[Natuashish]] and [[Sheshatshiu]] elect [[Band government|Band Councils]] to represent community concerns. The chiefs of both councils sit on the Innu Nation's board of directors and the three groups work in cooperation with one another.

The Innu Nation's efforts to raise awareness about the environmental impacts of [[Voisey's Bay Mine|a mining project]] in [[Voisey's Bay]] were documented in [[Marjorie Beaucage]]'s 1997 film ''Ntapueu ... i am telling the truth.''<ref name="BeardWhite">{{cite book |last1=Bell |first1=Lynne |last2=Williamson |first2=Janice |editor1-last=Beard |editor1-first=William |editor2-last=White |editor2-first=Jerry |title=North of Everything: English-Canadian Cinema Since 1980 |date=2002 |publisher=University of Alberta |isbn=9780888643902 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iLNhHWfarosC&q=%22Marjorie+Beaucage%22&pg=PA342 |language=en |chapter=In the Hands of the People: A Conversation with Marjorie Beaucage |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/northofeverythin00bear }}</ref>{{rp|342}}

===Davis Inlet, Labrador===
In the 1999 study of Innu communities in Labrador, Survival International concluded that government policies violated contemporary [[international law]] in human rights, and drew parallels with the [[Human rights in Tibet|treatment of Tibetans]] by the People's Republic of China. According to the study, from 1990 to 1997, the Innu community of [[Davis Inlet]] had a suicide rate more than [[Suicide in Canada#Among Indigenous peoples|twelve times the Canadian average]], and well over three times the rate often observed in isolated northern villages.<ref name="survival-international.org">[http://www.survival-international.org/files/books/InnuReport.pdf ''Canada's Tibet: The Killing of the Innu,'' a report from Survival International (PDF file)]</ref> <!-- Needs more explanation of government's relocating Innu - not covered in existing text -->

By 2000, the Innu island community of Davis Inlet asked the Canadian government to assist with a local [[Substance use disorder|addiction]] public health crisis. At their request, the community was relocated to a nearby mainland site, now known as ''Natuashish''.<ref>{{Cite web |date=1996 |title=Davis Inlet Innu get new home |url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Davis+Inlet+Innu+get+new+home-a030183252 |access-date=Oct 16, 2020 |publisher=Aboriginal Multi-Media Society of Alberta (AMMSA)}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The Innu of Labrador: From Davis Inlet to Natuashish |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/background/aboriginals/natuashish.html |publisher=CBC News |accessdate=27 October 2020 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120723015830/https://www.cbc.ca/news/background/aboriginals/natuashish.html |archivedate=July 23, 2012 |date=February 14, 2005}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://archive.macleans.ca/article/1993/2/15/horror-in-davis-inlet|title=Horror in Davis Inlet|date=Feb 15, 1993|accessdate=Oct 27, 2020|first=Tom|last=Fennell|publisher=Maclean's|archive-date=November 29, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201129074608/https://archive.macleans.ca/article/1993/2/15/horror-in-davis-inlet|url-status=dead}}</ref> At the same time, the Canadian government created the Natuashish and Sheshatshiu band councils under the ''Indian Act''.

===Kawawachikamach, Quebec===
{{unreferenced section|date=June 2014}}
[[Naskapi Nation of Kawawachikamach|Naskapi Nation]] of Kawawachikamach, Quebec, signed a comprehensive land claims settlement, the ''[[James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement|Northeastern Quebec Agreement]]''; they did so in 1978. As a consequence, the Naskapi of Kawawachikamach are no longer subject to certain provisions of the ''Indian Act''. All the Innu communities of Quebec are still subject to the Act.

===New York Power Authority controversy===
The [[New York Power Authority]]'s proposed contract in 2009 with the province of [[Quebec]] to buy power from its extensive [[Hydroelectricity|hydroelectric dam]] facilities has generated controversy, because it was dependent on construction of a new dam complex and transmission lines that would have interfered with the traditional ways of the Innu.<ref name=Canadian>Katrina Kieltyka, "Sierra Club fighting plan to buy Canadian power: Say hydroelectric dams would harm indigenous people," ''Legislative Gazette'', March 16, 2009, p. 21, available at [http://www.legislativegazette.com/back_issues/09-3-16_for_web.pdf ''Legislative Gazette'' archives] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090325113240/http://www.legislativegazette.com/back_issues/09-3-16_for_web.pdf |date=2009-03-25 }} (.pdf file). Retrieved March 20, 2009.</ref> According to the [[Sierra Club]]:

{{blockquote|[t]he "New York Power Authority is in preliminary discussions and considering the liability of a new contract with [[Hydro-Québec|Hydro Quebec]]," a Canadian supplier of hydroelectricity.|''Legislative Gazette''<ref name=Canadian />}}

The Innu community, the Sierra Club, and the [[National Lawyers Guild]] are fighting to prevent this proposed contract, which would have to be approved by New York's Governor, under his regulatory authority.<ref name=Canadian /> The problem is that construction of required [[Electric power transmission|electric transmission]] lines would hinder the Innu's [[Hunter-gatherer|hunting-gathering-fishing lifestyle]]:

{{blockquote|Chief Georges-Ernest Grégoire of the Innu community in Eastern Quebec urged the governor not to proceed with a plan to buy hydroelectric power from Canada, saying the dam complex that would be built would affect the traditional way of life for his people.|''Legislative Gazette'' (caption for a photo of Chief
Grégoire)<ref name=Canadian />}}

Chief Grégoire's comments at a press conference in [[Albany, New York]] were translated, but whether from French or [[Innu-aimun]] is not clear.<ref name=Canadian />

=== Natuashish and Sheshatshiu, Newfoundland and Labrador ===
{{More citations needed section|date=June 2024}}
Innu have only been in Sheshatshiu since fur [[trading post]]s were established by the [[Hudson's Bay Company]] in [[North West River]] in the mid-1700s and only in Davis Inlet / Natuashish since 1771, when the Moravian Church set up the first mission at Nuneingoak on the Labrador coast.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/moravian-missions-in-labrador-emc |title=Moravian Missions in Labrador|first1=France|last1=Rivet|publisher=[[The Canadian Encyclopedia ]]|website=www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca|date=February 7, 2006|access-date=June 17, 2024}}</ref> [[Danny Williams (Canadian politician)|Danny Williams]], the then [[Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador]] struck a deal on September 26, 2008, with Labrador's Innu to permit construction of [[Muskrat Falls Generating Station]], a hydroelectric [[megaproject]] to proceed on the proposed [[Churchill River (Atlantic)|Lower Churchill]] site. They also negotiated compensation for another project on the Upper Churchill, where large tracts of traditional Innu hunting lands were flooded.

==Culture==
{{unreferenced section|date=June 2014}}
[[Image:20050607-092209 NatashquanQC TsehekapetishukNamatueminishuk.jpeg|thumb|"Buckle up your children" sign in Innu-aimun language, in the Pointe-Parent reserve near Natasquan, Quebec.]]
[[File:HIND(1863) LABRADOR-EXP. p364 A VISIT TO OTELNE IN HIS LODGE.jpg|thumb|Housing]]

===[[Ethnobotany]]===
The Innu people grate the inner bark of ''[[Abies balsamea]]'' (balsam fir) and eat it to benefit the diet.<ref>Speck, Frank G., 1917, Medicine Practices of the Northeastern Algonquians, Proceedings of the 19th International Congress of Americanists Pp. 303–321, page 313</ref>

===Traditional crafts===
Traditional Innu craft is demonstrated in the [[Innu tea doll]]. These children's toys originally served a dual purpose for nomadic Innu tribes. When travelling vast distances over challenging terrain, the people left nothing behind. They believed that "Crow" would take it away. Everyone, including young children, helped to transport essential goods. Innu women made intricate dolls from [[Reindeer|caribou]] hides and scraps of cloth. They filled the dolls with tea and gave them to young girls to carry on long journeys. The girls could play with the dolls while also carrying important goods. Every able-bodied person carried something. Men generally carried the heavier bags and women would carry young children.

===Traditional clothing, style and accessories===
Men wore caribou pants and boots with a [[Buckskin (leather)|buckskin]] long shirt, all made by women. With the introduction of trade cloth from the French and English, people began replacing the [[Buckskins|buckskin shirts]] with ones made of cloth. Most still wore boots and pants made from caribou hide. Women wore long dresses of buckskin. Contemporary Innu women have often replaced these with manufactured pants and jackets. Women traditionally wore their hair long or in two coils. Men wore theirs long.

Both genders wore necklaces made of bone and bead. Smoke pipes were used by both genders, marked for women as shorter. If a man killed a bear, it was a sign of joy and initiation into adulthood and the man would wear a necklace made from the bear's claws.

===Housing===
The houses of the Montagnais were cone shaped. The Naskapi made long, domed houses covered in caribou hides. These days the [[hearth]] is a metal stove in the centre of the house.

===Traditional foods===
Animals traditionally eaten included [[moose]], caribou, [[porcupine]], rabbits, [[marten]], [[Groundhog|woodchuck]], squirrel; [[Canada goose]], [[snow goose]], [[Brant (goose)|brant]]s, ducks, [[teal]], [[loon]]s, [[spruce grouse]], [[woodcock]], [[snipe]], [[passenger pigeon]]s, [[rock ptarmigan|ptarmigan]]; [[freshwater whitefish|whitefish]], [[lake trout]], salmon, [[Arctic char]], [[Pinniped|seal]] (''naskapi'') [[Esox|pike]], [[walleye]], [[Catostomidae|suckerfish]] (''Catostomidae''), [[sturgeon]], [[catfish]], [[lamprey]], and [[smelt (fish)|smelt]]. Fish were eaten roasted or smoke-dried. Moose meat and several types of fish were also smoked. [[Bannock (British and Irish food)|Oat bannock]], introduced by the French in the 16th century, became a staple and [[Bannock (Indigenous American food)|Indigenous bannock]] is still eaten today. Meat was eaten frozen, raw or roasted, and caribou was sometimes boiled in a stew. [[Pemmican]] was made with moose or caribou.

Plants traditionally eaten included raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, cherries, [[wild grape]]s, [[hazelnut]]s, crab apples, [[Lilium lancifolium|red martagon]] bulbs, [[Apios americana|Indian potato]], and maple-tree [[sap]] for sweetening. [[Cornmeal]] was traded with other [[First Nations in Canada|First Nations peoples]], such as the Iroquois, Algonquin, and [[Abenaki]], and made into apon ([[cornbread]]), which sometimes also included oat or wheat flour when it became available. [[Pine needle tea]] was meant to keep away infections and colds resulting from the harsh weather.

===Buckskin===
Traditionally, buckskin leather was a most important material used for clothing, boots, moccasins, house covers and storage. Women prepared the hides and many of the products made from it. They scraped the hides to remove all fur, then left them outside to freeze. The next step was to stretch the hide on a frame. They rubbed it with a mixture of animal brain and pine needle tea to soften it. The dampened hide was formed into a ball and left overnight. In the morning, it would be stretched again, then placed over a smoker to smoke and tan it. The hide was left overnight. The finished hide was called buckskin.

===Mythology===

The oral traditions of the Innu are noted as similar to those of other Cree-speaking cultures.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.native-languages.org/innu-legends.htm|title=Naskapi and Montagnais Innu Legends (Folklore, Myths, and Traditional Indian Stories)}}</ref> Of particular relevance is [[Tshakapesh]], a [[lunar deity|lunar]] folk hero.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.native-languages.org/tshakapesh.htm|title = Tshakapesh (Chakabesh), dwarf hero of the Innu and Cree}}</ref>
[[File:HIND(1863) LABRADOR-EXP. p222 MOSQUITO LAKE.jpg|thumb|Canoes]]
The spirits they believed in are [[Caribou Master]], [[Atshen]], and [[Matshishkapeu]].

===Film and television===
The Innu people were profiled in ''[[Carcajou et le péril blanc]] (Kauapishit Miam Kuakuatshen Etentakuess)'', a documentary film series by [[Arthur Lamothe]] which were among the first films in the history of cinema to depict indigenous peoples speaking their own languages.<ref>Isabelle Morissette, "Carcajou et le péril blanc/Kauapishit Miam Kuakuatshen Etentakuess" (pp. 29–30) in ''Guide to the Cinema(s) of Canada'' (Peter H. Rist, ed.) [[Bloomsbury Publishing]], 2002. {{ISBN|9780313017254}}.</ref>

Other important later films set in Innu communities have included the narrative feature films ''[[Le Dep]]'', ''[[Mesnak]]'' and ''[[Kuessipan]]'', and the documentary films ''[[Innu Nikamu: Resist and Sing]]'' and ''[[Call Me Human]]''.

==Transportation==

In traditional Innu communities, people walked or used [[snowshoe]]s. While people still walk and use snowshoes where necessary for hunting or trapping, many Innu communities rely heavily on trucks, SUVs, and cars; in northern Innu communities, people use [[snowmobile]]s for hunting and general transportation.
{{clear}}

==Notable people==
{{div col}}
*[[An Antane-Kapesh]], writer
*[[Joséphine Bacon]], poet
*[[Jani Bellefleur-Kaltush]], filmmaker
*[[Bernard Cleary]], politician<ref>"Meet Canada's first Innu MP, the Bloc's Bernard Cleary". ''[[The Hill Times]]'', November 8, 2004.</ref>
*[[Naomi Fontaine]], writer
*[[Sharon Fontaine-Ishpatao]], actress<ref name=turcotte>Sylvain Turcotte, [https://lenord-cotier.com/2022/08/02/sharon-fontaine-ishpatao-se-plait-a-jouer/ "Sharon Fontaine-Ishpatao se plaît à jouer"]. ''Le Nord-Côtier'', August 2, 2022.</ref>
*[[Jonathan Genest-Jourdain]], politician
*[[Michel Jean]], journalist and writer
*[[Jean-Luc Kanapé]], conservationist and actor
*[[Natasha Kanapé Fontaine]], writer
*[[Kanen (singer)|Kanen]], musician
*[[Carole Labarre]], writer
*[[Matiu (musician)|Matiu]], musician
*[[Claude McKenzie]], musician ([[Kashtin]])<ref name=kashtin>{{cite encyclopedia | title = Kashtin | encyclopedia = The Canadian Encyclopedia | publisher = Historica Canada| date=September 19, 2023 | url = https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/kashtin-emc | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20050518062940/http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=U1ARTU0001815 | url-status = live | archive-date = May 18, 2005 | access-date =2009-10-03 }}</ref>
*[[Geneviève McKenzie-Sioui]], musician
*[[Rita Mestokosho]], poet
*[[Peter Penashue]], politician<ref name="cabinet">{{cite news|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/penashue-appointed-to-federal-cabinet-1.1092686 |title=Penashue appointed to federal cabinet|publisher=[[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]]|date=2011-05-18|access-date=2011-05-18}}</ref>
*[[Scott-Pien Picard]], musician
*[[Laurie Rousseau-Nepton]], astrophysicist
*[[Shauit]], musician
*[[Florent Vollant]], musician ([[Kashtin]])<ref name=kashtin/>
{{div col end}}

==See also==
* [[Violence against indigenous women]]
* [[Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

== Citations ==
{{reflist}}

== General bibliography ==
* Rogers, Edward S., and Leacock, Eleanor (1981). "Montagnais-Naskapi". In J. Helm (Ed.), ''[[Handbook of North American Indians]]: Subarctic'' (Vol. 6, pp.&nbsp;169–189). Washington: Smithsonian Institution.

== External links ==
{{commons category|Innu}}
* [http://www.innu.ca/ Official website of the Innu Nation of Labrador.]
* [http://www.naskapi.ca/ Official website of the Naskapi Nation of Kawawachikamach, Quebec]

{{Aboriginal peoples in Quebec}}
{{Innu}}
{{Indigenous peoples by continent}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Innu| ]]
[[Category:Algonquian peoples]]
[[Category:Algonquian ethnonyms]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Canada]]
[[Category:Indigenous peoples in Canada]]