AMS 262 / ENV 262 — Race, Indigeneity, and the Environment

ENDONYM – name the people call themselves

Sometimes transliterated/corrupted

Othaakiiwaki →  French Sac → English Sauk

EXONYM – name given by outsiders

Sometimes taken from a neighboring Native group

Lakota (“friend” or “ally”) → called by the Ojibwe “Nadowessiwag” (“little snakes”) → French Nadouessioux → English Sioux

Sometimes simply given a name by the English

Lenape (“original or real people”) → lived near the Delaware River → Delaware Indians

 

When in doubt — Wikipedia usually lists the most common names/spellings

 

COLLECTIVE NAMES FOR THE PEOPLE WHOSE ANCESTORS LIVED IN NORTH AMERICA THE LONGEST

Indians – since 1492

“Red Indians” – mostly British

"American Indians" – used in United States

 

Native Americans – since 1960s

Earlier usage (19th c.)=white people born in U.S.A. (not immigrants)

 

Both "American Indian" and "Native American" are widely used and there does not seem to be a consensus over which is preferred.  It may be useful to search both terms.

 

Amerindians / Amerinds – since 1902 

mostly used in anthropology

 

Aboriginals – not common in U.S.A. but seen occasionally in 19th c. and before

 

Indigenous people – since 1980s, more widely used since 2002, still more common in academic writing