The
Mi'kmaq language (spelled and pronounced
Micmac historically and now often
Migmaw or
Mikmaw in English, and
Míkmaq,
Míkmaw or
Mìgmao in Mi'kmaq) is an
Eastern Algonquian language spoken by nearly 11,000
Mi'kmaq in
Canada and the
United States out of a total
ethnic Mi'kmaq population of roughly 20,000. The word
Mi'kmaq is a plural word meaning 'my friends' (singular
Míkm); the adjectival form is
Míkmaw. The language's native name is
Lnuismk,
Míkmawísimk or
Míkmwei (in some dialects).