Atikamekw

The Atikamekw are an Indigenous people in Canada. Their historic territory, Nitaskinan ('Our Land'), is in the upper Saint-Maurice River valley of Quebec (about 300 kilometres (190 mi) north of Montreal). One of the main communities is Manawan, about 160 kilometres (99 mi) northeast of Montreal. Their current population is around 8,000. They have a tradition of agriculture as well as fishing, hunting, and gathering. They maintain close ties with the Innu people, who were their historical allies against the Inuit. The Atikamekw language, likely a variety of Cree in the Algonquian family, is closely related to that of the Innu. It is still in everyday use, being among the Indigenous languages least threatened with extinction. Their traditional ways of life are endangered, however, as their homeland has largely been taken over by logging companies. Their name, which literally means 'lake whitefish', is sometimes also spelt Atihkamekw, Attikamekw, Attikamek, or Atikamek. The French colonists referred to them as Têtes-de-Boules, meaning 'Ball-Heads' or 'Round-Heads'. Some Atihkamekw families make their living making traditional birchbark baskets and canoes.