If you’re looking to learn Ojibwe then you may be wondering if the popular language learning platform Duolingo has an Ojibwe course.
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Does Duolingo Have A Ojibwe Course?
Despite the importance and long history of the Ojibwe language, Duolingo doesn’t currently have an Ojibwe course.
Ojibwe is a fascinating indigenous North American language with a long and rich history. Today it is spoken by approximately 50,000 people, mainly in Canada and the US.
Many people who are looking to learn a new language use Duolingo, a fun language learning platform that features bite-size lessons on various languages.
Duolingo is known to be a fun, free and easy way to learn a new language.
Why Is Ojibwe Not On Duolingo?
It’s hard to say exactly why Duolingo hasn’t yet produced an Ojibwe course as Ojibwe has a long and important history especially in Canada and the US.
Few Speakers
One reason why Duolingo may not have produced a Duolingo Ojibwe course yet is that there are relatively few people who speak the language.
Ojibwe currently has around 50,000 speakers around the world. This is quite a small amount compared to other more popular languages and may be a reason why Duolingo has chosen not to produce the course yet.
Having said that, Duolingo has produced courses on much smaller languages (in terms of number of speakers).
They have courses on small minority languages such as Hawaiian which only has 24,000 speakers total!
Additionally they have made a High Valyrian course of which there are no native speakers as this is a fictional language.
Less Popular Language
Another reason why Duolingo may have not yet produced a Duolingo Ojibwe course is that there isn’t enough demand.
Ojibwe isn’t a popular language for native English speakers to learn. Relatively few people are interested in learning the language compared with other languages and Duolingo produces courses based on demand.
This is a shame because it’s certain that there is some demand for English speakers wanting to learn Ojibwe (you wouldn’t be on this page if there wasn’t!).
Ojibwe is actually an endangered language and is at risk of dying out if people stop learning it. For this reason, it would be really beneficial if Duolingo produced an Ojibwe course as it could help bring needed awareness to the language.
Duolingo is currently working on other languages which they believe will be more popular with their users.
When Will Ojibwe Be Available On Duolingo?
The Duolingo Incubator is a feature where you can see what languages Duolingo are currently working on producing a course for.
The Duolingo courses are created by volunteers. You can contribute to a course on the Duolingo Incubator page if you’re fluent in more than one language.
This page simply shows which courses are currently being produced so you can apply to help build a course if you want to.
Having checked the Duolingo Incubator, I can see that currently Ojibwe isn’t a course they’re working on. This means that Duolingo Ojibwe isn’t going to be released any time soon as they’re not even working on producing a course.
Within the incubator, on their language list they do say ‘more languages will be available for teaching soon’ however it is unclear how long we may be waiting for more courses to be added.
Duolingo has been focusing recently on endangered languages so Ojibwe could definitely be a potential candidate for an upcoming course.
Recently they have produced courses in Navajo, Scottish Gaelic and Hawaiian. Additionally they are working on creating a Maori course.
How Do Duolingo Decide On Which Courses To Create?
Duolingo themselves state that they decide on new courses based on the Duolingo forums.
They suggest the best way to get them to add a new language is by visiting their forum section and searching for suggestions that have been made in the past.
You then should add an upvote or comment to these posts. The more upvotes the more likely Duolingo will take notice and build a course.
If you want to help then you can upvote this Duolingo forum post to show Duolingo that people want an Ojibwe course.
Alternatives To Duolingo To Learn Ojibwe
Whilst Duolingo is a fantastic resource for learning a new language, don’t let their lack of an Ojibwe course stop you from learning the language if you want to.
There are plenty of fantastic courses out there for learning Ojibwe – both free and paid.
Free Alternatives For Learning Ojibwe
Memrise
Memrise is an online language learning app that uses fun games to help its users learn their chosen language.
They have tons of free Ojibwe courses that will teach you the alphabet, vocabulary and phrases in Ojibwe.
It’s really interactive and gradually introduces new words slowly so you have time to consolidate them all. There’s also plenty of opportunities to practice what you’ve learnt.
Ojibwe.net
One of the best free resources available for Ojibwe is the website Ojibwe.net.
They have tons of lessons going from beginners to intermediate to advanced.
As well as lessons which teach you Ojibwe words, phrases and grammar, the website also has a range of fun stories and songs to help you learn.
Paid Alternatives For Learning Ojibwe
Pimsleur Ojibwe
Pimsleur is a fantastic audio course that will get you speaking from day 1.
This course is perfect for anyone who wants to focus on being able to speak the language (rather than reading and writing).
You can try Pimsleur Ojibwe for free by using a free trial.
Ojibwe Dictionary
I’d recommend getting a standard Ojibwe – English dictionary to help expand your vocabulary and look up new words.
This is essential for any new language learner.
Thanks for reading this post on whether Duolingo currently has an Ojibwe course.
Even though Duolingo doesn’t currently have an Ojibwe course, there are still lots of other ways that you can learn Ojibwe.
Check our other Ojibwe content here.
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