indigenous peoples
First Nations peoples
Indigenous peoples are the original inhabitants of a region, along with their descendants—communities whose presence predates colonization or the formation of current national boundaries.
The plural peoples emphasizes distinct nations and cultures rather than a single homogeneous group: Indigenous peoples of the Americas include hundreds of distinct nations.
The phrase carries legal and political weight in international contexts, particularly in discussions of land rights, self-determination, and cultural preservation.
The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was adopted in 2007.
Canada's non-Inuit indigenous peoples
- InuitArctic indigenous people
- MaoriNew Zealand's indigenous people
- SamiIndigenous Arctic Scandinavians
- AmerindianIndigenous American person
Legal claims to territory
- self-determinationControl over one's fate
- treatyBinding pact between nations
- territorialDefensive about owned space
- custodiansThose entrusted with care
stewards · reservations · autonomy · self-governance · recognition · repatriation · decolonization · tribal council
Human-made historical objects
- archaeological sitesPreserved historical excavation zones
- sacred objectsItems of spiritual importance
- oral traditionsCulture transmitted through speech
- ancestral landsFamily territory through generations
cultural preservation · ethnography · repatriation · museum collections · endangered languages · traditional knowledge · rock art · burial grounds
Long-established customs passed down
- ceremoniesFormal observances with ritual
- ritualsCeremonial repeated practices
- storytellingRecounting events aloud
- oral historyRecorded interviews about the past
mythology · cosmology · dance · music · languages · handicrafts · weaving · pottery
Descent from progenitors
- forebearsAncestral family members
- bloodlineAncestry through generations
- genealogyStudy of family descent
- descendantsThose who come after
clan · kinfolk · elders · matrilineal · patrilineal · family tree · roots · progenitors
Spirits inhabit all things
- sacred sitesReligiously significant locations
- shamanismMediation between worlds
- creation storiesAccounts of existence's origin
- totemsSpiritual clan symbols
vision quests · sweat lodge · dreamtime · spirit animals · ancestors · ceremonial · taboo · offerings
First Nations
Canada's non-Inuit indigenous peoples
land rights
Legal claims to territory
- self-determinationControl over one's fate
- treatyBinding pact between nations
- territorialDefensive about owned space
custodians · stewards · reservations · autonomy · self-governance · recognition · repatriation · decolonization · tribal council · reparations
artifacts
Human-made historical objects
- archaeological sitesPreserved historical excavation zones
- sacred objectsItems of spiritual importance
- oral traditionsCulture transmitted through speech
ancestral lands · cultural preservation · ethnography · repatriation · museum collections · endangered languages · traditional knowledge · rock art · burial grounds
traditions
Long-established customs passed down
- ceremoniesFormal observances with ritual
- ritualsCeremonial repeated practices
- storytellingRecounting events aloud
oral history · mythology · cosmology · dance · music · languages · handicrafts · weaving · pottery · tattooing
lineage
Descent from progenitors
- forebearsAncestral family members
- bloodlineAncestry through generations
- genealogyStudy of family descent
descendants · clan · kinfolk · elders · matrilineal · patrilineal · family tree · roots · progenitors · inheritance
animism
Spirits inhabit all things
- sacred sitesReligiously significant locations
- shamanismMediation between worlds
- creation storiesAccounts of existence's origin
totems · vision quests · sweat lodge · dreamtime · spirit animals · ancestors · ceremonial · taboo · offerings · blessing
- cultural heritagefolklore, traditions, customs, folk music revival, museum collections
- Colonial BrazilBrazil, Bahia, Rio de Janeiro, Salvador, Sao Paulo
- Southern African tribesBantu, Bushmen, ethnic groups, desert tribes, nomadic tribes
- AlaskaFairbanks, Juneau, Denali, Sitka, Kodiak
- Americas HistoryAmerican Revolution, Aztec Empire, colonial era, colonization, Columbus
- BrazilRio, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Brasilia, Amazon River
indigenous peoplessettlers
Those who establish homes
colonizers · colonists · immigrants · newcomers · invaders
indigenous peoplescolonizers
Those who establish foreign control
colonial powers · occupiers · conquerors · colonists · ruling class
indigenous peoplesimmigrant communities
Groups of foreign-born residents