Why are Native Americans still referred to as Indians?
Posted Dec 4, 2014, 3:51 AM UTC
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u/TibetanPeachPie is correct. This question, while it is related to history, isn't necessarily about history, but more of a social science question.
Yes, the misnomer "Indian" was stuck to Native Americans after Columbus "discovered" the New World, but that isn't the reason why natives are still referred to as such.
But one way to answer is your question is by looking at this from a legal standpoint. In terms of the law, Native Americans are legally titled "Indians" based on past dealings with them.
For example, the various governmental departments responsible for interactions with Native American tribes are termed as such; there is the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Bureau of Indian Education, and so forth. Various laws term tribes as "Indians". You have 'The Federal Indian Trust Responsibility' and the 'Indian Citizenship Act'.
So again, Native Americans are legally cemented with the term "Indian(s)", which aids in reinforcing the title. Is this wrong? That is completely subjective.
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why are Inuit and first nations different? (Métis makes sense).
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But in many First Nations, the term Indian is still used, as well as in Canadian law, and by most older individuals even in communities where younger people are using different terminology. Increasingly though words like Indian or First Nations are being replaced by nation names such as Cree, Gitksan, Nuxalk, and so on.
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Yes, though "generally" is a simple majority term, and there are many regions and groups where it is not yet understood to be a pejorative.
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I have removed this personal anecdote as per our rules. No offense intended, but it is not what our subreddit is about. The intent of r/AskHistorians, is to provide in-depth, source-based answers from people who have studied the area or topic under discussion.
This is not meant as a reprimand, as I am sure of your good intentions.
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Do you think that text-books don't address the misunderstanding? I assure you, they do. When a word is in common usage and there's little impetus to change it then it probably won't change. If many Native American's refer to themselves as Indians and have publications like Indian Country Today why would a word poof out of existence? Because of a mistaken etymology? That makes little sense.
I don't understand why this is asked in r/askhistorians as its not really a history question.