Canada’s historical relationship with the first inhabitants of the land has been shaped by its imperial and colonial history. One result has been that for many years, Indigenous peoples’ respective identities were neither recognized nor respected in mainstream discourse. This is best exemplified by the fact that all of the Western Hemisphere’s autonomous Indigenous groups or nations came to be referred to simply as “Indians,” even though they were and continue to be distinct from one another linguistically, culturally, politically and in many other ways.
Over time, Columbus’s misnomer “Indians” has been superseded by a succession of other terms, such as Native, Aboriginal, First Nations and more recently Indigenous, some of which derive from government discourse or Indigenous national and international movements. All these terms carry connotations that can be functional or harmful, depending upon context, and their usage by powerful social institutions such as universities makes a real difference.
Version 3.0 of this guide has been produced to help communicators navigate the terminology and meanings associated with this subject in order to produce the best — and most respectful — results, with the recognition that, as time passes, the terminology is subject to change and this guide will again need to be refreshed.
Please note that this guide is not a comprehensive treatment of this complex subject, but it is an entry point. Users are encouraged to expand their knowledge on the matter by referring to other sources, some of which are listed at the end of this document.