Other Terminology
Click each term to learn what it means.
Aboriginal
Afro-Indigenous
Ancestral Territory
Land that has been utilized for traditional purposes. This might be different from treaty territory as there were no colonial treaties yet negotiated when nations occupied various territories across this vast land. A traditional territory connects Indigenous peoples both ancestrally and contemporarily to the land.
BIPOC
Indian
First Nations people who are registered under the Indian Act are still identified as this term legally. This makes the term federally legislated and colonial and therefore should not be used in any other way other than in its legal context.
Indigenous People
Kanata
A Haudenosaunee word meaning “the village” from which Canada got its name.
Native
This term is usually used to describe a person that could be either First Nations, Métis, or Inuit. Although it is still commonly used, it carries negative connotations and does not honour the distinctiveness of different Indigenous groups.
Native American & American Indian
Used in the context of First Nations in the United States. Not used for First Nations in Canada.
Reserve
A First Nations Reserve is land that the federal government designated for occupancy by a particular First Nation in treaty negotiations. The term used for this land in the United States is reservation.
Turtle Island
What many First Nations refer to North America as.