Title: Tribal Nomenclature: American Indian, Native American, and First Nation | Britannica
Headings: Tribal Nomenclature: American Indian, Native American, and First Nation
Tribal Nomenclature: American Indian, Native American, and First Nation
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In the 1970s Native Americans in Canada began to use the term First Nation as their preferred self-referent. The Canadian government adopted this use but did not furnish a legal definition for it. The Métis and Inuit preferred not to be called First Nations, and thus the terms “aboriginal peoples” or “aboriginal nations” are typically used when referring to the Inuit, Métis, and First Nations peoples of Canada in aggregate. By the end of the 20th century, native peoples from around the world had begun to encourage others to use tribal self-names when possible (i.e., to refer to an individual as a Hopi, Xavante, or Sami) and the word indigenous when a descriptor for their shared political identity was more suitable. This preference was recognized by the United Nations when it established the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (2000) and passed the Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (2007). In the United States, however, many individuals of indigenous heritage continued to refer to aboriginal Americans, in aggregate, as Indians. Elizabeth Prine Pauls
Learn More in these related Britannica articles: Native American
Native American, member of any of the aboriginal peoples of the Western Hemisphere, although the term often connotes only those groups whose original territories were in present-day Canada and the United States.… American Indian
American Indian, member of any of the aboriginal peoples of the Western Hemisphere.