Editing Beothuk language (section)

==Classification==
Claims of links with the neighbouring [[Algonquian languages|Algonquian language]] family date back at least to [[Robert Gordon Latham]] in 1862. From 1968 onwards, John Hewson has put forth evidence of sound correspondences and shared morphology with Proto-Algonquian and other better-documented Algonquian languages. If this is valid, Beothuk would be an extremely divergent member of the family.<ref>{{cite journal|last = Hewson | first =John | title = Beothuk Consonant Correspondences | journal = International Journal of American Linguistics |volume=37 |issue=4 |date =1971 |pages=244–249 | doi =10.1086/465172 | jstor =1264516 | s2cid =145190678 }}</ref>

Other researchers claimed that proposed similarities are more likely the result of borrowing than cognates.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Voegelin |first1=C.F. |last2=Voegelin |first2=E.W. |editor=Johnson, F. |chapter=Linguistic considerations of northeastern North America |title=Man in Northeastern North America |pages=178–194 |publisher=Philip's Academy |location=Andover, MA |date=1946}}</ref> The limited and poor nature of the documentation means there is not enough evidence to draw strong conclusions.<ref>{{cite book |last=Mithun |first=Marianne |title=The Languages of Native North America |url=https://archive.org/details/languagesnativen00mith |url-access=limited |edition=First paperback |year=2001 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge, United Kingdom |isbn=0-521-23228-7 |page=[https://archive.org/details/languagesnativen00mith/page/n199 368]}}</ref> Owing to this overall lack of meaningful evidence, [[Ives Goddard]] and [[Lyle Campbell]] claim that any connections between Beothuk and Algonquian are unknown and likely unknowable.<ref>{{cite book |last=Campbell |first=Lyle |title=American Indian Languages: The Historical Linguistics of Native America |url=https://archive.org/details/americanindianla00camp |url-access=limited |year=1997 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=0-19-509427-1 |page=[https://archive.org/details/americanindianla00camp/page/n304 290]}}</ref>