author

Antoine Simon Maillard

d. 1762

A French missionary in Acadia, he is remembered for his close work with the Mi’kmaq and Acadian communities and for leaving behind important linguistic and religious writings from the 18th century.

1 Audiobook

An Account of the Customs and Manners of the Micmakis and Maricheets Savage Nations, Now Dependent on the Government of Cape-Breton

An Account of the Customs and Manners of the Micmakis and Maricheets Savage Nations, Now Dependent on the Government of Cape-Breton

by Antoine Simon Maillard

About the author

Sent to Acadia in 1735 by the French Seminary of Foreign Missions, he later served as vicar-general to the bishop of Quebec and worked for many years around Louisbourg. After the fall of Louisbourg in 1745, he continued ministering to displaced Acadians and to Mi’kmaq communities, and he remained active in the region until his death on August 12, 1762.

He is especially noted for learning the Mi’kmaq language and for producing texts that helped preserve and transmit it. Those writings, along with his missionary work, have made him a lasting figure in the history of Acadia and early Indigenous-language scholarship in Atlantic Canada.

The name given appears to refer to the man more commonly listed in historical sources as Pierre Maillard or Abbé Maillard. I could not confirm a reliable portrait from the sources I checked, so no profile image is included.