Cree syllabics are the versions ofCanadian Aboriginal syllabics used to writeCree dialects, including the original syllabics system created for Cree andOjibwe. There are two main varieties of syllabics for Cree:Western Cree syllabics andEastern Cree syllabics. Syllabics were later adapted to several other languages.^[2] It is estimated that over 70,000Algonquian-speaking people use the script, fromSaskatchewan in the west toHudson Bay in the east, the US border toMackenzie andKewatin (theNorthwest Territories andNunavut) in the north.^[3]

Cree syllabics
Anunpointed inscription inPlains Cree, using the conventions ofWestern Cree syllabics. The text transliterates to Êwako oma asiniwi mênikan kiminawak ininiwak manitopa kaayacik. Êwakwanik oki kanocihtacik asiniwiatoskiininiw kakiminihcik omêniw. Akwani mitahtomitanaw askiy asay êatoskêcik ota manitopa.
Script type	Abugida
Time period	1840s–present
Languages	Cree,Naskapi,Ojibwe/Chippewa[1]
Related scripts
Parent systems	Devanagari,Pitman shorthand Cree syllabics
Unicode
Unicode range	U+1400–U+167FUnified Canadian Aboriginal Syllabics, U+18B0–U+18FFUnified Canadian Aboriginal Syllabics Extended
This article containsphonetic transcriptions in theInternational Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, seeHelp:IPA. For the distinction between[ ],/ / and ⟨ ⟩, seeIPA § Brackets and transcription delimiters.

This article containsCanadian Aboriginal syllabic characters. Without properrendering support, you may seequestion marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of syllabics.

Cree syllabics were developed for Ojibwe byJames Evans, a missionary in what is nowManitoba in the 1830s. Evans had originally adapted theLatin script to Ojibwe (seeEvans system), but after learning of the success of theCherokee syllabary,^{[additional citation(s) needed]} he experimented with invented scripts based on his familiarity withshorthand andDevanagari.^[4]

When Evans later worked with the closely related Cree and ran into trouble with the Latin alphabet, he turned to his Ojibwe project and in 1840 adapted it to Cree.^[3] The result contained just nine glyph shapes, each of which stood for a syllable with thevowels determined by the shapes' orientation. After the 1841 publication of a syllabics hymn book, the new script spread quickly. The Cree valued it because it could be learned in just a few hours and because it was visually distinctive from the Latin script of the colonial languages.^[2] Virtually all Cree became literate in the new syllabary within a few years. Evans taught by writing on birchbark with soot, and he became known as "the man who made birchbark talk."^[5]

Canadian Aboriginal syllabics are unique amongabugida scripts in that the orientation of a symbol, rather than modifications of its shape ordiacritic marks, determines thevowel of a syllable. Each basic shape corresponds to a specific consonant sound; this is flipped or rotated to denote the accompanying vowel.^[6]

Like theLatin alphabet, syllabics are written from left to right, with each new line of writing directly under the previous one.

Sample text: ᒥᓯᐌ ᐃᓂᓂᐤ ᑎᐯᓂᒥᑎᓱᐎᓂᐠ ᐁᔑ ᓂᑕᐎᑭᐟ ᓀᐢᑕ ᐯᔭᑾᐣ ᑭᒋ ᐃᔑ ᑲᓇᐗᐸᒥᑯᐎᓯᐟ ᑭᐢᑌᓂᒥᑎᓱᐎᓂᐠ ᓀᐢᑕ ᒥᓂᑯᐎᓯᐎᓇ᙮ ᐁ ᐸᑭᑎᓇᒪᒋᐠ ᑲᑫᑕᐌᓂᑕᒧᐎᓂᓂᐤ ᓀᐢᑕ ᒥᑐᓀᓂᒋᑲᓂᓂᐤ ᓀᐢᑕ ᐎᒋᑴᓯᑐᐎᓂᐠ ᑭᒋ ᐃᔑ ᑲᓇᐗᐸᒥᑐᒋᐠ᙮

Transliteration: Misiwe ininiw tipēnimitisowinik ēshi nitawikit nēsta pēyaykan kici ishi kanawapamikowisit kistēnimitisowinik nēsta minikowisiwina. Ē pakitinamacik kakētawenitamowininiw nēsta mitonēnicikaniniw nēsta.

Meaning: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.^[7]

The syllabary continues in use for dialects of Cree west of theManitoba–Ontario border asWestern Cree syllabics.John Horden^{[citation needed]} introduced modifications in the 1850s in theJames Bay area.^[3] These were standardized in 1865 to formEastern Cree syllabics, used today for many eastern dialects of Cree,Naskapi, and Ojibwe, though Cree dialects of easternQuebec use the Latin alphabet. The two versions differ primarily in the way they indicate syllable-final consonants, in how they mark the semi-vowel/w/, and in how they reflect the phonological differences between Cree dialects.^[2] There are more minor local differences in orthography, shapes of the characters, writing styles, and punctuation, with some writers using dots or spaces between words, and others not indicating word separation.^[2]

The syllabics have been recorded to have been used as numerals with individual fixed integer values in certain combinations akin to that of theRoman system:^[8]

• avertical bar represents 1,
• ᐅo represents 3 (Iᐅ equals 4),
• ᐊa represents numerals more than 6 (ᐅᐊ equals 6, ᐊ equals 7, ᐊII equals 9),
• ᒥmi represents 10,
• looped syllables (ᓀᓂᓄᓇᑯᑲᑫᑭ) represent 20-90.

Thezero is represented as aneight pointed star.^[8]

Though used for manuscripts, letters, and personal records since the 19th century, the need for special type long restricted printed syllabics to missionary publications. However, with the development of syllabic typewriters and, later, word processors, control of the script passed to native speakers, and it is now used for schoolbooks, periodicals, and official documents.^[2]

• Canadian Aboriginal syllabics
• Eastern Cree syllabics
• Inuktitut writing
• Journal of Indigenous Studies
• Unified Canadian Aboriginal Syllabics (Unicode block)
• Western Cree syllabics

• Hundreds of Eastern James Bay Cree books were published by the Cree School Board of Quebec, Canada. See thecatalogueArchived 2022-01-21 at theWayback Machine.
• Swampy Cree Hymn Book =ᓇᑲᒧᐏᓇ ᐅᒪᐢᑮᑯᐘ ᐅᑎᑘᐏᓂᐘᐤ. (ByJames Evans)Norway House, 1841. (Peel 209)
• The Psalter, or Psalms of David =ᑌᕕᑦ ᐅ ᓂᑲᒧᐎᓇᕽ. (ByJohn Horden) London, 1875. (Peel 738)
• The New Testament, translated into the Cree language =ᐅᔅᑭ ᑎᔅᑌᒥᓐᑦ ᑭ ᑎᐯᓕᒋᑫᒥᓇᐤ ᓀᔥᑕ ᑭ ᐱᒪᒋᐃᐌᒥᓇᐤ ᒋᓴᔅ ᒃᣅᔅᑦ. (By John Horden) London, 1876. (Peel 782)
• Catechism. (Transl. James Evans) Rossville, É.N.
• The Holy Bible. (Transl.John Sinclair,Henry Steinhauer) London, 1861.
• Bunyan: Pilgrim´S Progress. (Transl. John Sinclair) Toronto, 1900.
• Cree Hymn Book. (By John Mcdougall) Toronto, 1888.
• Cree Hymn Book. (By Robert Steinauer, Egerton Steinauer) Toronto, 1920.
• The Epistle of Paul The Apostle To The Galatians. (Transl. Joseph Reader) Oonikup (Northwest Territory), S.A.
• The Acts of The Apostles And The Epistles. London, 1891.
• The Books of The New Testament. London, 1859.
• The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Ephesians; the Epistle of Jacob; the First Epistle General of John. (Transl. Thomas Hullburt) Rossville, 1857.
• The Travellers´ Spiritual Provision (Calendar) S.L., S. A.
• The Handbook to Scripture Truth: Words of Admonition, Counsel and Comfort. Toronto, 1893.
• Prières, cantiques, catéchisme, etc. en langue crise. Montréal, 1886.
• The Book of Common Prayer, (Transl. John Horden) London, 1889 (Addl. Printings Through 1970).

In: Paleográfiai kalandozások. Szentendre, 1995.ISBN 963-450-922-3

• Barber, F. Luis:James Evans and the Cree Syllabic. In:Victoria Library Bulletin Toronto. July 1940. vol. 2. No. 2. 16 p.
• Burwash, Nathaniel:The Gift to a Nation of Written Language. S.l., 1911. 21 p.
• Evans, James:Cree Syllabic Hymn Book. Norway House, 1841. In:Bibliographical Society of Canada; Facsim. Series 4. Toronto, 1954. 23 p.
• Ray, Margaret:The James Evans Collection. In:Victoria Library Bulletin Toronto. July 1940. vol. 2. No. 2. 16 p.

• Standard Roman Orthography - Cree Syllabic Matching Quizzes,GiftofLanguageandCulture.CA.
• "Eastern James Bay Cree fonts",EastCree.org.
• "Cree (ᓀᐦᐃᔭᐍᐏᐣ / Nēhiyawēwin)",Omniglot.com.
• "Cree",LanguageGeek.com.
• "Naasaab Izhi-anishinaabebii'igeng A Conference to find a Common Anishinaabemowin Writing SystemArchived 2021-05-14 at theWayback Machine" report,Weshki.AtWebPages.com.
• "Cree Syllabics",SICC.SK.CA.
• Cree standard Roman orthography to syllabics converter