Nevada, a state in the western region of the United States of America, hosts a large number of Native Americans who have traditionally lived in the Great Basin, a large geographic feature of Nevada. There are four Native American languages that are spoken by recognized tribes of Nevada, three of which fall under the Uto-Aztecan languages classification (Ute, Paiute, and Shoshone),[1][a] while the other is an isolate. A minority language is also spoken in Nevada.
Distribution
There are four Native American languages currently spoken in Nevada. Population estimates are based on figures from Ethnologue and U.S. Census data, as given in sub-pages below. The four languages are shown in the table below:
Language |
Classification |
Number of Speakers |
Total Ethnic Population |
Tribe(s) Included |
Location(s) in Nevada |
Significant External Populations
|
Washo |
Language Isolate |
20 |
1,100 |
Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California |
Reno-Sparks Indian Colony, Carson Colony, Dresslerville Colony, Stewart Community, Washoe Ranch, Woodfords Community, Reno-Sparks Indian Colony |
California
|
Northern Paiute |
Uto-Aztecan: Numic: Western Numic |
700 |
5,000 |
Northern Paiute |
Lovelock Indian Colony, Fallon Reservation and Colony, Pyramid Lake Indian Reservation, Reno-Sparks Indian Colony, Duck Valley Indian Reservation, Summit Lake Indian Reservation, Walker River Indian Reservation, Winnemucca Indian Colony, Yerington Colony and Campbell Ranch, Fort McDermitt Indian Reservation |
Idaho
|
Shoshone |
Uto-Aztecan: Numic: Central Numic |
2,000 |
12,300 |
Western Shoshone, Goshute, Shoshone (unspecified for Ely I.R.) |
Duckwater Reservation, Ely Shoshone Indian Reservation, Fallon Reservation and Colony, Reno-Sparks Indian Colony, Duck Valley Indian Reservation, Battle Mountain Indian Reservation, Elko Indian Colony, South Fork and Odgers Ranch Indian Colony, Wells Indian Colony, Winnemucca Indian Colony, Yomba Indian Reservation, Goshute Indian Reservation, Fort McDermitt Indian Reservation |
Idaho, Wyoming, Utah
|
Colorado River Numic |
Uto-Aztecan: Numic: Southern Numic |
2,000 |
5,000 |
Southern Paiute, Ute |
Las Vegas Indian Colony, Moapa River Indian Reservation |
Utah, Colorado, Arizona, California
|