Aboriginal peoples in present-day Canada include the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis,[REF] the latter being a mixed-blood people who originated in the mid-17th century when First Nations and Inuit people married European settlers [REF].
The Aboriginal population at the time of the first European settlements is estimated to have been between 200,000[REF] and two million,[REF] with a figure of 500,000 accepted by Canada's Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples [REF].