American Indian history
| Total population | |
|---|---|
|
American Indian and Alaska Native (2010 Census Bureau) |
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| Regions with significant populations | |
| Predominantly in the Western United States; small but significant communities also exist in the Eastern United States | |
| Languages | |
|
Native American languages (including Navajo, Central Alaskan Yup'ik, Dakota, Western Apache, Keres, Cherokee, Choctaw, Zuni, Ojibwe, O'odham) English, Spanish, French, Russian |
|
| Religion | |
|
|
| Related ethnic groups | |
American Indian and Alaska Native (2010 Census Bureau)
One race: 2,932,248 are registered
In combination with one or more of the other races listed: 2,288,331
Total: 5,220,579
Native Americans, also known as American Indians, Indians, Indigenous Americans and other terms, are the indigenous peoples of the United States. There are over 500 federally recognized tribes within the U.S., about half of which are associated with Indian reservations. The term excludes Native Hawaiians and some Alaska Natives.
The ancestors of modern Native Americans arrived in what is now the United States at least 15,000 years ago, possibly much longer, from Asia through Beringia. A vast variety of peoples, societies and cultures subsequently developed. Native Americans were greatly affected by the European colonization of the Americas, which began in 1492, and their population declined precipitously due to introduced diseases, warfare, and slavery. After the founding of the United States, many Native American peoples were subjected to warfare, removals, and one-sided treaties, and they continued to suffer from discriminatory government policies into the 20th century. Since the 1960s the self-determination movement has resulted in many changes to the lives of Native Americans. Today, there are over five million Native Americans in the United States.
Since the end of the 15th century, the migration of Europeans to the Americas has led to centuries of population, cultural, and agricultural transfer and adjustment between Old and New World societies, a process known as the Columbian exchange. Most Native American groups had historically preserved their histories by oral traditions and artwork, which has resulted in the first written sources on the conflict being authored by Europeans.
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Wikipedia