Around 1500, many Indigenous Peoples did not use written language. Instead, histories and knowledge were passed on orally. This is called oral tradition and is still very important to many Indigenous Peoples today. 

Not a lot of written records exist about individuals from Algonquian language family around 1500. Most of the information about this time has been passed on through Indigenous oral traditions and storytelling practices. Other information has come from archaeological discoveries and the testimonies written by some of the first Europeans to arrive on the North American continent. 

Author: Alexandre Lanoix. Adaptations and translation by LEARN/RÉCIT for the Anglophone Community.
 

Important concepts & Big ideas

Archaeology – Archéologie
Oral Tradition – Tradition orale
Language family – Famille de langues

 

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