The Ottawa tribe is located primarily in areas around Lakes Michigan and Huron. Today there are about 15,000 Ottawas, mainly in Ontario, Canada, and the language is still spoken by a goodly number of them. The Ottawa language is considered a dialect of Ojibwe, with both Ottawa and Ojibwe being mutually understood.

This book is the first Prayer Book printed in either Ottawa or Ojibwe, and was intended for use by the Ottawas of Grand Traverse Bay (Leelenau County) in Michigan, where they still live. Although the title states that it has just Morning and Evening Prayer, the book actually consists of Morning Prayer only, along with the Litany, the Ten Commandments, and a selection of Hymns. Ten Commandments appear to be translated by someone else. All but the Hymns are given here. It is not listed in David Griffiths' Bibliography of the Book of Common Prayer (possibly due to its abreviated nature), but is discussed in Muss-Arnolt's The Book of Common Prayer among the Nations of the World. Muss-Arnolt records criticism of this text, mainly in that it is not as literal as it might be.

An 1846 translation of the 1662 English Book of Common Prayer (published in Canada) is available from Google Books as PDF graphics. It is listed by Griffiths as 129:1, and the language is stated to be Chippewa, another dialect of Ojibwe

I hereby authorize the following translation of Morning and Evening Service, together with the Selection of Hymns, to be used by the Ottawa Indians under the care of the Missionaries of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Michigan.

SAM’L McCOSKRY,
Bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Michigan.
Detroit, August 16, 1844.
 

Morning Prayer

The Litany

The Ten Commandments