Though the grouping is often encountered in the literature, it is an areal grouping rather than a genetic one. In other words, the languages are grouped together because they were spoken near one another, not because they are more closely related to one another than to any other Algonquian language.
Within the Algonquian family, only Eastern Algonquian constitutes a separate genetic subgroup.
The languages are listed below along with dialects and subdialects. This classification follows Goddard (1996, 2001) and Mithun (1999).
- i. Arapaho-Atsina
- Arapaho (also known as Arapahoe or Arapafoe)
- Gros Ventre (also known as Atsina, Aáni, Ahahnelin, Ahe, A’aninin, A’ane, or A’ananin) (†)
- Besawunena (†)
- Nawathinehena (†)
- Ha’anahawunena (†)
- Sutaio (also known as Soʼtaaʼe) (†)
(†) = Extinct