Henry Lorne Masta was an Abenaki writer, teacher, and scholar of the Abenaki language. He was also a respected leader in the Abenaki community. Masta published Abenaki Legends, Grammar, and Place Names in 1932. He began writing the book in 1929 at 79 years of age. Abenaki is a member of the Algonquian languages family and is spoken in Quebec and neighboring US states. There are few native speakers—the language is spoken by only 3% of the current Abenaki population. Masta was fluent in French, English and the Abenaki language.