although the laurentian language, which was spoken by the inhabitants of st. lawrence valley settlements such as stadacona (modern-day quebec city) and hochelaga (modern-day montreal) in the 16th century, is now extinct, it was closely related to other dialects of the iroquoian languages, such as the oneida and mohawk languages. the word "kaná:ta"' still means "town" in mohawk, and related cognates include "ganataje" and "iennekanandaa" in the onondaga and seneca languages respectively. prior to archeological confirmation that the st. lawrence iroquois were a separate people from the mohawk, most sources specifically linked the name's origin to the mohawk word instead of the laurentian one.