Who are the First Americans?
Indian. American Indian. Native American. First Americans. These terms are used interchangeably, but where did they come from? What do they mean?
This activity explores the history of these terms, which are used to reference the collective Indigenous communities who call this continent home. It is important to understand that these terms are racial identifiers. As individuals, we prefer to be identified by our specific tribal affiliation.
Tap or hover your mouse over a word and learn about its history and use.
Indian
“Indian” was first used in 1492 by Christopher Columbus, who misreported that he had arrived on the shores of India. This erroneous term is one of the oldest used to describe the Indigenous peoples of this hemisphere.
American Indian
When German scholar Marin Waldseemuller published a map of the globe in 1507, he named the Western Hemisphere “America,” after the Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci. “America” was added to the other misnomer, “Indian,” to create “American Indian.” This inaccurate term remains in use and is widely tolerated.
Native American
The term “Native American” emerged in the 1960s. The term was aligned with an effort to establish a naming convention for all minorities in the US. Others include African American, Asian American, and so on. However, this term is open to misuse. Some people consider themselves “native American” because they were born in the United States.
First American
We were the first on this land, though the last to gain US citizenship. This is an emerging term that differentiates our Indigenous people from descendants of settler communities.
First Nations
The term "First Nations” is used in Canada. It is uniquely associated with the Indigenous non-Inuit communities of our northern neighbors.
Indigenous
“Indigenous” applies to all the cultures and peoples who were the original inhabitants and caretakers of a given place. This term is used globally to refer to non-Western cultures.
Amerindian
This term is used most often in French- and Spanish- speaking countries to refer to Indigenous communities across the Americas. It is also used in academic fields, including cultural and linguistic anthropology.
Aboriginal
“Aboriginal” is used in Australia to refer to its Indigenous communities. The term, a hangover co-opted from mid-19th century anthropological research, refers to people who inhabited a land prior to colonialism. It is culturally rejected in the United States as part of the racist history of ethnology.