Section 1: Introduction to Indigenous Peoples
Aboriginal or Indigenous?
Section 35 (2) of the Constitution Act, 1982, defined “Aboriginal peoples in Canada” as including “the Indian, Inuit and Métis peoples of Canada.”
These terms will be explained as we progress through the guide. Some of them have changed or are changing.
For example, Indian is now considered offensive and has been replaced by First Nations. And we are hearing the term Indigenous more and more in Canada. It is being used synonymously with Aboriginal, and in many cases it is the preferred term as the collective noun for First Nations, Métis, and Inuit. There are many reasons for this shift. One reason is that the prefix ab can mean “from” or “away from,” which has lead to a concern that Aboriginal could be misinterpreted as “away from” or “not” original. Indigenous comes from the Latin word indigena, which means “sprung from the land; native.” And Indigenous Peoples recognize that, rather than a single group of people, there are many separate and unique Nations (Ward, 2017).
Wherever possible, though, you should use the specific names of the Nations and communities, especially if you are acknowledging territory and identity.
refers to the legal identity of a First Nations person who is registered under the Indian Act. It should be used only within this legal context, and is otherwise considered an offensive term.
an English word that means “from original.” In the Indian Act, Aboriginal includes the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples of Canada. In many cases, the preferred term is Indigenous.
the accepted term for people who are Indigenous and who do not identify as Inuit or Métis. Today there are around 630 First Nations in Canada.
a distinct Indigenous group with formal recognition equal to that of the First Nations and Inuit. Their ancestors were French and Scottish men who migrated to Canada in the 17th and 18th centuries to work in the fur trade and who had children with First Nations women and then formed new communities. The families and their descendants were most often referred to as Métis (from the French for “to mix”).
an Indigenous group living in the Arctic regions of Canada, Greenland, Alaska, and Russia. Historically they were referred to in Canada as “Eskimos” or “Esquimaux,” but this term is neither accurate nor respectful and should not be used.
