En las Américas , los pueblos indígenas comprenden a los habitantes precolombinos del continente antes del asentamiento europeo en el siglo XV, así como a los grupos étnicos que se identifican con la población precolombina del continente como tal. [37] Estas poblaciones exhiben una diversidad significativa; algunos pueblos indígenas fueron históricamente cazadores-recolectores , mientras que otros practicaban la agricultura y la acuicultura . Varias sociedades indígenas desarrollaron estructuras sociales complejas, incluyendo arquitectura monumental precontacto, ciudades organizadas, ciudades-estado, cacicazgos , estados, reinos, repúblicas, confederaciones e imperios. [38] Estas sociedades poseían diferentes niveles de conocimiento en campos como la ingeniería, la arquitectura, las matemáticas, la astronomía, la escritura, la física, la medicina, la agricultura, el riego, la geología, la minería, la metalurgia, la escultura y la orfebrería.
Los pueblos indígenas siguen habitando muchas regiones de las Américas, con poblaciones significativas en países como Bolivia , Canadá , Chile , Colombia , Ecuador , Guatemala, México , Perú y Estados Unidos . Hay al menos mil lenguas indígenas diferentes habladas en las Américas, con 574 tribus reconocidas a nivel federal solo en los EE. UU. Algunas lenguas, como el quechua , el arawak , el aymara , el guaraní , el maya y el náhuatl , tienen millones de hablantes y son reconocidas como oficiales por los gobiernos de Bolivia, Perú, Paraguay y Groenlandia. Los pueblos indígenas, ya sea que residan en áreas rurales o urbanas, a menudo mantienen aspectos de sus prácticas culturales, incluida la religión, la organización social y las prácticas de subsistencia . Con el tiempo, estas culturas han evolucionado, preservando las costumbres tradicionales y adaptándose a las necesidades modernas. Algunos grupos indígenas permanecen relativamente aislados de la cultura occidental , y algunos todavía se consideran pueblos no contactados . [39]
Las Américas también albergan a millones de personas de ascendencia mixta indígena, europea y, a veces, africana o asiática, históricamente denominadas mestizos en los países de habla hispana. [40] [41] En muchas naciones latinoamericanas , las personas de ascendencia indígena parcial constituyen una mayoría o una porción significativa de la población, particularmente en América Central , México, Perú, Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Chile y Paraguay. [42] [43] [44] Los mestizos superan en número a los pueblos indígenas en la mayoría de los países de habla hispana, según estimaciones de identificación cultural étnica. Sin embargo, dado que las comunidades indígenas en las Américas se definen por la identificación cultural y el parentesco en lugar de la ascendencia o la raza , los mestizos generalmente no se cuentan entre la población indígena a menos que hablen una lengua indígena o se identifiquen con una cultura indígena específica. [45] Además, muchas personas de ascendencia totalmente indígena que no siguen tradiciones indígenas ni hablan una lengua indígena han sido clasificadas o se autoidentifican como mestizas debido a la asimilación a la cultura hispana dominante . En los últimos años, la población autoidentificada como indígena en muchos países ha aumentado a medida que las personas reclaman su herencia en medio de crecientes movimientos liderados por indígenas en pos de la autodeterminación y la justicia social . [46]
La aplicación del término " indio " se originó con Cristóbal Colón , quien, en su búsqueda de la India , pensó que había llegado a las Indias Orientales . [47] [48] [49] [50] [51] [52]
Las islas llegaron a ser conocidas como las " Indias Occidentales " (o " Antillas "), un nombre que todavía se usa para describir las islas. Esto llevó al término general "Indias" e "indios" ( en español : indios ; portugués : índios ; francés : indiens ; holandés : indianen ) para los habitantes indígenas, lo que implicaba algún tipo de unidad étnica o cultural entre los pueblos indígenas de las Américas. Este concepto unificador, codificado en la ley, la religión y la política, no fue aceptado originalmente por los innumerables grupos de pueblos indígenas, pero desde entonces ha sido adoptado o tolerado por muchos durante los últimos dos siglos. [53] El término "indio" generalmente no incluye a los pueblos indígenas cultural y lingüísticamente distintos de las regiones árticas de las Américas, incluidos los pueblos aleutianos , inuit o yupik . Estos pueblos entraron al continente como una segunda ola migratoria más reciente, varios miles de años después, y tienen similitudes genéticas y culturales mucho más recientes con los pueblos indígenas de Siberia . Sin embargo, estos grupos son considerados, no obstante, "pueblos indígenas de las Américas". [54]
El término amerindio , compuesto de "indio americano", fue acuñado en 1902 por la Asociación Antropológica Estadounidense . Ha sido controvertido desde su creación. Fue rechazado inmediatamente por algunos miembros destacados de la Asociación y, aunque fue adoptado por muchos, nunca fue aceptado universalmente. [55] Si bien nunca fue popular en las propias comunidades indígenas, sigue siendo un término preferido entre algunos antropólogos, en particular en algunas partes de Canadá y el Caribe de habla inglesa . [56] [57] [58] [59]
" Pueblos indígenas en Canadá " se utiliza como el nombre colectivo para las Primeras Naciones , los inuit y los métis . [60] [61] El término pueblos aborígenes como sustantivo colectivo (que también describe a las Primeras Naciones, los inuit y los métis) es un término técnico específico utilizado en algunos documentos legales, incluida la Ley constitucional de 1982. [ 62] Con el tiempo, a medida que las percepciones sociales y las relaciones entre el gobierno y los indígenas han cambiado, muchos términos históricos han cambiado de definición o han sido reemplazados a medida que han caído en desgracia. [63] El uso del término "indio" está mal visto porque representa la imposición y restricción de los pueblos y culturas indígenas por parte del gobierno canadiense. [63] Los términos "nativo" y " esquimal " generalmente se consideran irrespetuosos (en Canadá), por lo que rara vez se utilizan a menos que se requiera específicamente. [64] Si bien "pueblos indígenas" es el término preferido, muchas personas o comunidades pueden optar por describir su identidad utilizando un término diferente. [63] [64]
El pueblo métis de Canadá puede contrastarse, por ejemplo, con los mestizos de raza mixta europeos-indígenas (o caboclos en Brasil) de Hispanoamérica , quienes, con su mayor población (que en la mayoría de los países latinoamericanos constituye ya sea mayorías absolutas, pluralidades o al menos grandes minorías), se identifican en gran medida como un nuevo grupo étnico distinto tanto de los europeos como de los indígenas, pero que aún se consideran un subconjunto del pueblo hispano o brasileño de origen europeo en cultura y etnicidad ( cf. ladinos ).
Entre los países de habla hispana , indígenas o pueblos indígenas ('pueblos indígenas') es un término común, aunque también se puede escuchar nativos o pueblos nativos ('pueblos nativos'); además, aborigen ('aborigen') se usa en Argentina y pueblos originarios ('pueblos originarios') es común en Chile . En Brasil, indígenas y povos originários ('pueblos indígenas') son designaciones de sonido formal comunes, mientras que índio ('indio') sigue siendo el término que se escucha con más frecuencia (el sustantivo para la nacionalidad del sur de Asia es indiano ), pero durante los últimos 10 años se ha considerado ofensivo y peyorativo. [ cita requerida ] Aborígene y nativo rara vez se usan en Brasil en contextos específicos de indígenas (por ejemplo, aborígene generalmente se entiende como el etnónimo de los indígenas australianos ). Sin embargo, los equivalentes en español y portugués de indio podrían usarse para referirse a cualquier cazador-recolector o persona indígena de pura sangre, particularmente de continentes distintos de Europa o África; por ejemplo, indios filipinos . [ cita requerida ]
Los pueblos indígenas de los Estados Unidos son comúnmente conocidos como nativos americanos , indios y nativos de Alaska . [ aclaración necesaria ] El término "indio" todavía se utiliza en algunas comunidades y sigue utilizándose en los nombres oficiales de muchas instituciones y empresas en Indian Country . [65]
Las distintas naciones, tribus y grupos de pueblos indígenas de las Américas tienen diferentes preferencias en cuanto a la terminología que utilizan para referirse a ellos mismos. [66] [ página necesaria ] Si bien existen variaciones regionales y generacionales en las que se prefieren términos generales para referirse a los pueblos indígenas en su conjunto, en general, la mayoría de los pueblos indígenas prefieren ser identificados por el nombre de su nación, tribu o grupo específico. [66] [67]
Los primeros colonos solían adoptar términos que algunas tribus utilizaban entre sí, sin darse cuenta de que eran términos despectivos utilizados por los enemigos. Al hablar de subconjuntos más amplios de pueblos, la denominación a menudo se ha basado en el idioma, la región o la relación histórica compartida. [68] Se han utilizado muchos exónimos ingleses para referirse a los pueblos indígenas de las Américas. Algunos de estos nombres se basaban en términos de lenguas extranjeras utilizados por los primeros exploradores y colonos, mientras que otros eran el resultado de los intentos de los colonos de traducir o transliterar endónimos de las lenguas nativas. Otros términos surgieron durante períodos de conflicto entre los colonos y los pueblos indígenas. [69]
Desde finales del siglo XX, los pueblos indígenas de las Américas han sido más expresivos sobre cómo quieren ser tratados, presionando para suprimir el uso de términos ampliamente considerados como obsoletos, inexactos o racistas . Durante la segunda mitad del siglo XX y el auge del movimiento por los derechos de los indios , el gobierno federal de los Estados Unidos respondió proponiendo el uso del término " nativo americano ", para reconocer la primacía de la tenencia de los pueblos indígenas en la nación. [70] Como se puede esperar entre personas de más de 400 culturas diferentes solo en los EE. UU., no todas las personas que se pretende describir con este término han estado de acuerdo en su uso o lo han adoptado. Ningún convenio de nomenclatura de grupo ha sido aceptado por todos los pueblos indígenas de las Américas. La mayoría prefiere que se les llame gente de su tribu o nación cuando no se habla de los nativos americanos/indios americanos en su conjunto. [71]
Desde la década de 1970, la palabra "indígena", que se escribe con mayúscula inicial cuando se hace referencia a un pueblo, ha ido surgiendo gradualmente como un término general preferido. La capitalización es para reconocer que los pueblos indígenas tienen culturas y sociedades que son iguales a las de los europeos, africanos y asiáticos. [67] [72] Esto ha sido reconocido recientemente en el AP Stylebook . [73] Algunos consideran que es inapropiado referirse a los pueblos indígenas como "indígenas americanos" o añadir cualquier nacionalidad colonial al término porque las culturas indígenas existían antes de la colonización europea. Los grupos indígenas tienen reivindicaciones territoriales que son diferentes de las fronteras nacionales e internacionales modernas, y cuando se los etiqueta como parte de un país, no se reconocen sus tierras tradicionales. Algunos que han escrito directrices consideran que es más apropiado describir a una persona indígena como "que vive en" o "de" las Américas, en lugar de llamarlos "estadounidenses"; o simplemente llamarlos "indígenas" sin ninguna adición de un estado colonial. [74] [75]
El poblamiento de las Américas comenzó cuando los cazadores-recolectores paleolíticos ( paleoindios ) ingresaron a América del Norte desde la estepa Mammoth del norte de Asia a través del puente terrestre de Beringia , que se había formado entre el noreste de Siberia y el oeste de Alaska debido al descenso del nivel del mar durante el Último Máximo Glacial (hace 26.000 a 19.000 años). [77] Estas poblaciones se expandieron al sur de la capa de hielo Laurentide y se extendieron rápidamente hacia el sur, ocupando América del Norte y del Sur , hace entre 12.000 y 14.000 años. [78] [79] [80] [81] [82] Las primeras poblaciones de las Américas, antes de hace aproximadamente 10.000 años, se conocen como paleoindios . Los pueblos indígenas de las Américas se han vinculado a las poblaciones siberianas por factores lingüísticos propuestos , la distribución de los tipos de sangre y en la composición genética reflejada por datos moleculares , como el ADN . [83] [84]
Aunque existe un acuerdo general en que las Américas fueron colonizadas por primera vez desde Asia, el patrón de migración y el lugar de origen en Eurasia de los pueblos que migraron a las Américas siguen sin estar claros. [79] La teoría tradicional es que los antiguos beringios se movieron cuando los niveles del mar bajaron significativamente debido a la glaciación cuaternaria , [85] [86] siguiendo manadas de megafauna del Pleistoceno ahora extinta a lo largo de corredores libres de hielo que se extendían entre las capas de hielo Laurentide y Cordilleran . [87] Otra ruta propuesta es que, ya sea a pie o en botes , migraron por la costa del Pacífico hacia Sudamérica hasta Chile . [88] Cualquier evidencia arqueológica de ocupación costera durante la última Edad de Hielo ahora habría sido cubierta por el aumento del nivel del mar , hasta cien metros desde entonces. [89]
La fecha precisa del poblamiento de las Américas es una pregunta abierta desde hace mucho tiempo. Si bien los avances en arqueología , geología del Pleistoceno , antropología física y análisis de ADN han arrojado progresivamente más luz sobre el tema, quedan preguntas importantes sin resolver. [90] [91] La "primera teoría de Clovis" se refiere a la hipótesis de que la cultura Clovis representa la presencia humana más antigua en las Américas hace unos 13.000 años. [92] La evidencia de culturas anteriores a Clovis se ha acumulado y ha retrasado la posible fecha del primer poblamiento de las Américas. [93] [94] [95] [96] Los académicos generalmente creen que los humanos llegaron a América del Norte al sur de la capa de hielo Laurentide en algún momento entre 15.000 y 20.000 años atrás. [90] [93] [97] [98] [99] [100] Algunas nuevas y controvertidas evidencias arqueológicas sugieren la posibilidad de que la llegada humana a las Américas pudo haber ocurrido antes del Último Máximo Glacial hace más de 20.000 años. [93] [101] [102] [103] [104] [105]Aunque técnicamente se refiere a la era anterior a los viajes de Cristóbal Colón de 1492 a 1504, en la práctica el término generalmente incluye la historia de las culturas indígenas hasta que los europeos las conquistaron o las influenciaron significativamente. [109] "Precolombino" se utiliza especialmente a menudo en el contexto de la discusión de las sociedades indígenas mesoamericanas anteriores al contacto : olmeca , tolteca , teotihuacana , zapoteca , mixteca , azteca y maya ; y las complejas culturas de los Andes : el Imperio Inca , la cultura Moche , la Confederación Muisca y Cañari .
La era precolombina se refiere a todas las subdivisiones del período en la historia y la prehistoria de las Américas antes de la aparición de influencias europeas y africanas significativas en los continentes americanos, que abarcan el tiempo de la llegada original en el Paleolítico superior hasta la colonización europea durante el período moderno temprano . [110] La civilización del Norte Chico (en el actual Perú) es una de las seis civilizaciones originales definitorias del mundo, que surgió de forma independiente aproximadamente al mismo tiempo que la de Egipto . [111] [112] Muchas civilizaciones precolombinas posteriores alcanzaron una gran complejidad, con características distintivas que incluían asentamientos permanentes o urbanos, agricultura, ingeniería, astronomía, comercio, arquitectura cívica y monumental y jerarquías sociales complejas . Algunas de estas civilizaciones se habían desvanecido hace mucho tiempo en el momento de las primeras llegadas significativas de europeos y africanos (aproximadamente a fines del siglo XV y principios del XVI), y solo se conocen a través de la historia oral y las investigaciones arqueológicas. Otros fueron contemporáneos al periodo de contacto y colonización y fueron documentados en relatos históricos de la época. Unos pocos, como los pueblos maya, olmeca, mixteco, azteca y nahua , tenían sus lenguas y registros escritos. Sin embargo, los colonizadores europeos de la época trabajaron para eliminar las creencias no cristianas y quemaron muchos registros escritos precolombinos. Solo unos pocos documentos permanecieron ocultos y sobrevivieron, dejando a los historiadores contemporáneos vislumbres de la cultura y el conocimiento antiguos.
Según relatos y documentos tanto indígenas como europeos, las civilizaciones americanas antes y en el momento del encuentro europeo habían alcanzado una gran complejidad y muchos logros. [113] Por ejemplo, los aztecas construyeron una de las ciudades más grandes del mundo, Tenochtitlan (el sitio histórico de lo que se convertiría en la Ciudad de México ), con una población estimada de 200.000 para la ciudad propiamente dicha y una población de cerca de cinco millones para el imperio extendido. [114] En comparación, las ciudades europeas más grandes en el siglo XVI fueron Constantinopla y París con 300.000 y 200.000 habitantes respectivamente. [115] La población de Londres, Madrid y Roma apenas superaba las 50.000 personas. En 1523, justo en la época de la conquista española, la población total del país de Inglaterra era de poco menos de tres millones de personas. [116] Este hecho habla del nivel de sofisticación, agricultura, procedimiento gubernamental y estado de derecho que existía en Tenochtitlan, necesario para gobernar a una ciudadanía tan grande. Las civilizaciones indígenas también mostraron logros impresionantes en astronomía y matemáticas, incluido el calendario más preciso del mundo. [ cita requerida ] La domesticación del maíz requirió miles de años de crianza selectiva, y el cultivo continuo de múltiples variedades se realizó con planificación y selección, generalmente por mujeres.
Los mitos de creación de los inuit, yupik, aleutianos e indígenas hablan de una variedad de orígenes de sus respectivos pueblos. Algunos "siempre estuvieron ahí" o fueron creados por dioses o animales, algunos migraron desde un punto cardinal específico y otros vinieron de "al otro lado del océano". [117]
La colonización europea de las Américas cambió fundamentalmente las vidas y culturas de los pueblos indígenas residentes. Aunque se desconoce el número exacto de la población de las Américas antes de la colonización, los investigadores estiman que las poblaciones indígenas disminuyeron entre un 80% y un 90% durante los primeros siglos de la colonización europea. La mayoría de los investigadores estiman que la población antes de la colonización era de alrededor de 50 millones, mientras que otros investigadores sostienen que era de 100 millones. Las estimaciones llegan a 145 millones. [118] [119] [120]
Las epidemias asolaron las Américas con enfermedades, como la viruela , el sarampión y el cólera , que los primeros colonos trajeron de Europa. La propagación de enfermedades infecciosas fue lenta al principio, ya que la mayoría de los europeos no estaban infectados de forma activa o visible, debido a la inmunidad heredada de generaciones de exposición a estas enfermedades en Europa. Esto cambió cuando los europeos comenzaron el tráfico humano de cantidades masivas de personas esclavizadas de África occidental y central hacia las Américas. Al igual que los pueblos indígenas, estos pueblos africanos, recién expuestos a las enfermedades europeas, carecían de cualquier resistencia heredada a las enfermedades de Europa. En 1520, un africano que había sido infectado con viruela había llegado a Yucatán. En 1558, la enfermedad se había extendido por toda América del Sur y había llegado a la cuenca del Plata. [121] La violencia de los colonos hacia los pueblos indígenas aceleró la pérdida de vidas. Los colonos europeos perpetraron masacres contra los pueblos indígenas y los esclavizaron. [122] [123] [124] Según la Oficina del Censo de los Estados Unidos (1894), las guerras indias de América del Norte del siglo XIX tuvieron un saldo de muertos conocido de aproximadamente 19.000 europeos y 30.000 nativos americanos, y un saldo de muertos total estimado de 45.000 nativos americanos. [125]
El primer grupo indígena encontrado por Colón, los 250.000 taínos de La Española , representaban la cultura dominante en las Antillas Mayores y las Bahamas. En treinta años, aproximadamente el 70% de los taínos habían muerto. [126] No tenían inmunidad a las enfermedades europeas, por lo que los brotes de sarampión y viruela devastaron su población. [127] Uno de esos brotes ocurrió en un campamento de africanos esclavizados, donde la viruela se extendió a la población taína cercana y redujo su número en un 50%. [121] El aumento del castigo a los taínos por rebelarse contra el trabajo forzado, a pesar de las medidas establecidas por la encomienda , que incluían educación religiosa y protección de las tribus en guerra, [128] finalmente condujo a la última gran rebelión taína (1511-1529).
Tras años de maltrato, los taínos comenzaron a adoptar conductas suicidas, con mujeres abortando o matando a sus bebés y hombres saltando de acantilados o ingiriendo mandioca sin tratar , un veneno violento. [126] Finalmente, un cacique taíno llamado Enriquillo logró resistir en la cordillera de Baoruco durante trece años, causando graves daños a las plantaciones españolas, controladas por los caribes y sus auxiliares indígenas . [129] [ verificación fallida ] Al enterarse de la gravedad de la revuelta, el emperador Carlos V (también rey de España) envió al capitán Francisco Barrionuevo a negociar un tratado de paz con el número cada vez mayor de rebeldes. Dos meses después, tras consultar con la Audiencia de Santo Domingo, a Enriquillo se le ofreció cualquier parte de la isla para vivir en paz.
Las Leyes de Burgos, 1512-1513 , fueron el primer conjunto de leyes codificadas que regían el comportamiento de los colonos españoles en América, en particular en lo que respecta a los pueblos indígenas. Las leyes prohibían el maltrato a los colonos y avalaban su conversión al catolicismo . [130] La corona española tuvo dificultades para hacer cumplir estas leyes en colonias distantes.
Las enfermedades epidémicas fueron la causa abrumadora de la disminución de la población de los pueblos indígenas. [131] [132] Después del contacto inicial con europeos y africanos, las enfermedades del Viejo Mundo causaron la muerte del 90 al 95% de la población nativa del Nuevo Mundo en los siguientes 150 años. [133] La viruela mató de un tercio a la mitad de la población nativa de La Española en 1518. [134] [135] Al matar al gobernante inca Huayna Capac , la viruela causó la Guerra Civil Inca de 1529-1532. La viruela fue solo la primera epidemia. El tifus (probablemente) en 1546, la influenza y la viruela juntas en 1558, la viruela nuevamente en 1589, la difteria en 1614 y el sarampión en 1618, todas devastaron los restos de la cultura inca.
La viruela mató a millones de habitantes nativos de México. [136] [137] Introducida involuntariamente en Veracruz con la llegada de Pánfilo de Narváez el 23 de abril de 1520, la viruela devastó México en la década de 1520, [138] posiblemente matando a más de 150.000 personas solo en Tenochtitlán (el corazón del Imperio Azteca), y ayudando en la victoria de Hernán Cortés sobre el Imperio Azteca en Tenochtitlán (actual Ciudad de México) en 1521. [ cita requerida ] [121]
Hay muchos factores que explican por qué los pueblos indígenas sufrieron pérdidas tan inmensas a causa de las enfermedades afroeuroasiáticas. Muchas enfermedades del Viejo Mundo, como la viruela bovina, se adquieren de animales domésticos que no son autóctonos de las Américas. Las poblaciones europeas se habían adaptado a estas enfermedades y habían desarrollado resistencia a lo largo de muchas generaciones. Muchas de las enfermedades del Viejo Mundo que se trajeron a las Américas eran enfermedades, como la fiebre amarilla , que eran relativamente manejables si se contagiaba de niño, pero que eran mortales si se contagiaba de adulto. Los niños a menudo podían sobrevivir a la enfermedad, lo que resultaba en inmunidad a la enfermedad durante el resto de sus vidas. Pero el contacto con poblaciones adultas sin esta inmunidad infantil o heredada haría que estas enfermedades resultaran fatales. [121] [139]
La colonización del Caribe condujo a la destrucción de los arahuacos de las Antillas Menores . Su cultura fue destruida en 1650. En 1550, solo sobrevivieron 500 de ellos, aunque los linajes continuaron hasta llegar a la población actual. En la Amazonia, las sociedades indígenas resistieron y siguen sufriendo siglos de colonización y genocidio. [140]
El contacto con enfermedades europeas como la viruela y el sarampión mató entre el 50 y el 67 por ciento de la población indígena de América del Norte en los primeros cien años después de la llegada de los europeos. [141] Alrededor del 90 por ciento de la población nativa cerca de la Colonia de la Bahía de Massachusetts murió de viruela en una epidemia en 1617-1619. [142] En 1633, en Fort Orange (Nueva Holanda) , los nativos americanos de allí estuvieron expuestos a la viruela debido al contacto con los europeos. Como había sucedido en otros lugares, el virus acabó con grupos enteros de población de nativos americanos. [143] Llegó al lago Ontario en 1636 y a las tierras de los iroqueses en 1679. [144] [145] Durante la década de 1770, la viruela mató al menos al 30% de los nativos americanos de la Costa Oeste . [146] La epidemia de viruela de América del Norte de 1775-82 y la epidemia de viruela de las Grandes Llanuras de 1837 trajeron devastación y una drástica reducción de la población entre los indios de las llanuras . [147] [148] En 1832, el gobierno federal de los Estados Unidos estableció un programa de vacunación contra la viruela para los nativos americanos ( Ley de Vacunación India de 1832 ). [149]
Los pueblos indígenas del Brasil disminuyeron desde un máximo precolombino de aproximadamente tres millones [150] a unos 300.000 en 1997. [ dudoso – discutir ] [ verificación fallida ] [ 151 ]
El Imperio español y otros europeos reintrodujeron caballos en América. Algunos de estos animales escaparon y comenzaron a reproducirse y aumentar sus números en estado salvaje. [152] La reintroducción del caballo , extinto en América durante más de 7500 años, tuvo un profundo impacto en las culturas indígenas de varias regiones, como las de las Grandes Llanuras , la Meseta Noroeste , la Gran Cuenca , Aridoamérica , el Gran Chaco y el Cono Sur . Al domesticar caballos, algunas tribus tuvieron un gran éxito: los caballos les permitieron expandir sus territorios, intercambiar más bienes con tribus vecinas y capturar más fácilmente animales de caza , como el bisonte .
Según Erin McKenna y Scott L. Pratt, la población indígena de las Américas era de 145 millones a finales del siglo XV y, a finales del siglo XVII, se había reducido a 15 millones debido a epidemias , guerras, masacres, violaciones masivas , hambruna y esclavitud. [120]
El trauma histórico indígena (IHT) es el trauma que puede acumularse a lo largo de generaciones y desarrollarse como resultado de las ramificaciones históricas de la colonización y está vinculado a dificultades de salud mental y física y al declive de la población. [153] El IHT afecta a muchas personas diferentes de múltiples maneras porque la comunidad indígena y su historia son diversas.
Muchos estudios (como Whitbeck et al., 2014; [154] Brockie, 2012; Anastasio et al., 2016; [155] Clark & Winterowd, 2012; [156] Tucker et al., 2016) [157] han evaluado el impacto del IHT en los resultados de salud de las comunidades indígenas de los Estados Unidos y Canadá. El IHT es un término difícil de estandarizar y medir debido a la vasta y variable diversidad de los pueblos indígenas y sus comunidades. Por lo tanto, es una tarea ardua asignar una definición operativa y recopilar datos sistemáticamente cuando se estudia el IHT. Muchos de los estudios que incorporan el IHT lo miden de diferentes maneras, lo que dificulta la recopilación de datos y su revisión holística. Este es un punto importante que proporciona contexto para los siguientes estudios que intentan comprender la relación entre el IHT y los posibles impactos adversos en la salud.
Algunas de las metodologías para medir el IHT incluyen una "Escala de Pérdidas Históricas" (HLS), una "Escala de Síntomas Asociados a Pérdidas Históricas" (HLASS) y estudios de ascendencia en escuelas residenciales. [153] : 23 La HLS utiliza un formato de encuesta que incluye "12 tipos de pérdidas históricas", como la pérdida del idioma y la pérdida de la tierra, y pregunta a los participantes con qué frecuencia piensan en esas pérdidas. [153] : 23 La HLASS incluye 12 reacciones emocionales y pregunta a los participantes cómo se sienten cuando piensan en estas pérdidas. [153] Por último, los estudios de ascendencia en escuelas residenciales preguntan a los encuestados si sus padres, abuelos, bisabuelos o "ancianos de su comunidad" fueron a una escuela residencial para comprender si la historia familiar o comunitaria en las escuelas residenciales está asociada con resultados negativos para la salud. [153] : 25 En una revisión exhaustiva de la literatura de investigación, Joseph Gone y sus colegas [153] recopilaron y compararon los resultados de los estudios que utilizan estas medidas de IHT en relación con los resultados de salud de los pueblos indígenas. El estudio definió los resultados de salud negativos para incluir conceptos como ansiedad , ideación suicida , intentos de suicidio , abuso de múltiples sustancias , TEPT , depresión , atracones , ira y abuso sexual. [153]
La conexión entre el IHT y las condiciones de salud es complicada debido a la naturaleza difícil de medir el IHT, la direccionalidad desconocida del IHT y los resultados de salud, y porque el término pueblos indígenas utilizado en las diversas muestras comprende una enorme población de individuos con experiencias e historias drásticamente diferentes. Dicho esto, algunos estudios como Bombay, Matheson y Anisman (2014), [158] Elias et al. (2012), [159] y Pearce et al. (2008) [160] encontraron que los encuestados indígenas con una conexión a escuelas residenciales tienen más resultados de salud negativos (por ejemplo, ideación suicida, intentos de suicidio y depresión) que aquellos que no tenían una conexión a escuelas residenciales. Además, los encuestados indígenas con puntajes más altos en HLS y HLASS tuvieron uno o más resultados de salud negativos. [153] Si bien existen muchos estudios [155] [161] [156] [162] [157] que encontraron una asociación entre el IHT y resultados adversos para la salud, los académicos siguen sugiriendo que sigue siendo difícil comprender el impacto del IHT. El IHT debe medirse sistemáticamente. Los pueblos indígenas también deben ser comprendidos en categorías separadas basadas en experiencias, ubicación y antecedentes similares en lugar de ser categorizados como un grupo monolítico. [153]
Durante miles de años, los pueblos indígenas domesticaron, criaron y cultivaron una gran variedad de especies de plantas. Estas especies constituyen ahora entre el 50% y el 60% de todos los cultivos en cultivo en todo el mundo. [163] En ciertos casos, los pueblos indígenas desarrollaron especies y cepas completamente nuevas mediante selección artificial , como en el caso de la domesticación y cría de maíz a partir de pastos silvestres de teosinte en los valles del sur de México. Numerosos productos agrícolas de este tipo conservan sus nombres nativos en los léxicos inglés y español.
Las tierras altas de América del Sur se convirtieron en un centro de agricultura temprana. Las pruebas genéticas de la amplia variedad de cultivares y especies silvestres sugieren que la papa tiene un solo origen en el área del sur de Perú , [164] de una especie del complejo Solanum brevicaule . Más del 99% de todas las papas cultivadas modernas en todo el mundo son descendientes de una subespecie indígena del centro-sur de Chile , [165] Solanum tuberosum ssp. tuberosum , donde se cultivó hace 10.000 años. [166] [167] Según Linda Newson , "Está claro que en la época precolombina algunos grupos luchaban por sobrevivir y a menudo sufrían escasez de alimentos y hambrunas , mientras que otros disfrutaban de una dieta variada y sustancial". [168]
La persistente sequía que se produjo alrededor del año 850 d. C. coincidió con el colapso de la civilización maya clásica , y la hambruna de Un Conejo (1454 d. C.) fue una gran catástrofe en México. [169]
Los pueblos indígenas de América del Norte comenzaron a practicar la agricultura hace aproximadamente 4.000 años, a finales del período Arcaico de las culturas norteamericanas. La tecnología había avanzado hasta el punto en que la cerámica había comenzado a volverse común y la tala de árboles a pequeña escala se había vuelto factible. Al mismo tiempo, los pueblos indígenas arcaicos comenzaron a utilizar el fuego de manera controlada. Llevaban a cabo la quema intencional de vegetación para imitar los efectos de los incendios naturales que tendían a limpiar el sotobosque de los bosques. Esto facilitaba el viaje y facilitaba el crecimiento de hierbas y plantas productoras de bayas, que eran importantes tanto para la alimentación como para la medicina. [170]
En el valle del río Misisipi , los europeos observaron que los nativos americanos cultivaban árboles frutales y de nueces no muy lejos de las aldeas y pueblos, y de sus jardines y campos agrícolas. Es probable que utilizaran la quema prescrita más lejos, en zonas de bosques y praderas. [171]
Many crops first domesticated by Indigenous peoples are now produced and used globally, most notably maize (or "corn") arguably the most important crop in the world.[172] Other significant crops include cassava; chia; squash (pumpkins, zucchini, marrow, acorn squash, butternut squash); the pinto bean, Phaseolus beans including most common beans, tepary beans, and lima beans; tomatoes; potatoes; sweet potatoes; avocados; peanuts; cocoa beans (used to make chocolate); vanilla; strawberries; pineapples; peppers (species and varieties of Capsicum, including bell peppers, jalapeños, paprika, and chili peppers); sunflower seeds; rubber; brazilwood; chicle; tobacco; coca; blueberries, cranberries, and some species of cotton.
Studies of contemporary Indigenous environmental management—including agro-forestry practices among Itza Maya in Guatemala and hunting and fishing among the Menominee of Wisconsin—suggest that longstanding "sacred values" may represent a summary of sustainable millennial traditions.[173]
Numerous Native American dog breeds have been used by the people of the Americas, such as the Canadian Eskimo dog, the Carolina dog, and the Chihuahua. Some indigenous peoples in the Great Plains used dogs for pulling travois, while others like the Tahltan bear dog were bred to hunt larger game. Some Andean cultures also bred the Chiribaya to herd llamas. The vast majority of indigenous dog breeds in the Americas went extinct, due to being replaced by dogs of European origin.[174]
The Fuegian dog was a domesticated variation of the culpeo that was raised by several cultures in Tierra del Fuego, like the Selk'nam and the Yahgan.[175] It was exterminated by Argentine and Chilean settlers, due to supposedly posing as a threat to livestock.[176]
Several bird species, such as turkeys, Muscovy ducks, Puna ibis, and neotropic cormorants were domesticated by various peoples in Mesoamerica and South America to be used for poultry.
In the Andean region, indigenous peoples domesticated llamas and alpacas to produce fiber and meat. The llama was the only beast of burden in the Americas before European colonization.
Guinea pigs were domesticated from wild cavies to be raised for meat consumption in the Andean region. Guinea pigs are now widely raised in Western society as household pets.
In Oasisamerica, several cultures raised scarlet macaws imported from Mesoamerica for their feathers.[177][178]
In the Maya civilization, stingless bees were domesticated to produce balché.[179]
Cochineal were harvested by Mesoamerican and Andean civilizations for coloring fabrics via carminic acid.[180][181][182]
Cultural practices in the Americas seem to have been shared mostly within geographical zones where distinct ethnic groups adopt shared cultural traits, similar technologies, and social organizations. An example of such a cultural area is Mesoamerica, where millennia of coexistence and shared development among the peoples of the region produced a fairly homogeneous culture with complex agricultural and social patterns. Another well-known example is the North American plains where until the 19th century several peoples shared the traits of nomadic hunter-gatherers based primarily on bison hunting.
The languages of the North American Indians have been classified into 56 groups or stock tongues, in which the spoken languages of the tribes may be said to center. In connection with speech, reference may be made to gesture language which was highly developed in parts of this area. Of equal interest is the picture writing especially well developed among the Chippewas and Delawares.[183]
Beginning in the 1st millennium BCE, pre-Columbian cultures in Mesoamerica developed several Indigenous writing systems (independent of any influence from the writing systems that existed in other parts of the world). The Cascajal Block is perhaps the earliest-known example in the Americas of what may be an extensive written text. The Olmec hieroglyphs tablet has been indirectly dated (from ceramic shards found in the same context) to approximately 900 BCE which is around the same time that the Olmec occupation of San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán began to weaken.[184]
The Maya writing system was logosyllabic (a combination of phonetic syllabic symbols and logograms). It is the only pre-Columbian writing system known to have completely represented the spoken language of its community. It has more than a thousand different glyphs, but a few are variations on the same sign or have the same meaning, many appear only rarely or in particular localities, no more than about five hundred were in use in any given time, and, of those, it seems only about two hundred (including variations) represented a particular phoneme or syllable.[185][186][187]
The Zapotec writing system, one of the earliest in the Americas,[188] was logographic and presumably syllabic.[188] There are remnants of Zapotec writing in inscriptions on some of the monumental architecture of the period, but so few inscriptions are extant that it is difficult to fully describe the writing system. The oldest example of the Zapotec script, dating from around 600 BCE, is on a monument that was discovered in San José Mogote.[189][full citation needed]
Aztec codices (singular codex) are books that were written by pre-Columbian and colonial-era Aztecs. These codices are some of the best primary sources for descriptions of Aztec culture. The pre-Columbian codices are largely pictorial; they do not contain symbols that represent spoken or written language.[190] By contrast, colonial-era codices contain not only Aztec pictograms, but also writing that uses the Latin alphabet in several languages: Classical Nahuatl, Spanish, and occasionally Latin.
Spanish mendicants in the sixteenth century taught Indigenous scribes in their communities to write their languages using Latin letters, and there are a large number of local-level documents in Nahuatl, Zapotec, Mixtec, and Yucatec Maya from the colonial era, many of which were part of lawsuits and other legal matters. Although Spaniards initially taught Indigenous scribes alphabetic writing, the tradition became self-perpetuating at the local level.[191] The Spanish crown gathered such documentation, and contemporary Spanish translations were made for legal cases. Scholars have translated and analyzed these documents in what is called the New Philology to write histories of Indigenous peoples from Indigenous viewpoints.[192][page needed]
The Wiigwaasabak, birch bark scrolls on which the Ojibwa (Anishinaabe) people wrote complex geometrical patterns and shapes, can also be considered a form of writing, as can Mi'kmaq hieroglyphics.
Aboriginal syllabic writing, or simply syllabics, is a family of abugidas used to write some Indigenous languages of the Algonquian, Inuit, and Athabaskan language families.
Indigenous music can vary between cultures, however, there are significant commonalities. Traditional music often centers around drumming and singing. Rattles, clapper sticks, and rasps are also popular percussive instruments, both historically and in contemporary cultures. Flutes are made of river cane, cedar, and other woods. The Apache have a type of fiddle, and fiddles are also found many First Nations and Métis cultures.
The music of the Indigenous peoples of Central Mexico and Central America, like that of the North American cultures, tends to be spiritual ceremonies. It traditionally includes a large variety of percussion and wind instruments such as drums, flutes, sea shells (used as trumpets), and "rain" tubes. No remnants of pre-Columbian stringed instruments were found until archaeologists discovered a jar in Guatemala, attributed to the Maya of the Late Classic Era (600–900 CE); this jar was decorated with imagery depicting a stringed musical instrument which has since been reproduced. This instrument is one of the very few stringed instruments known in the Americas before the introduction of European musical instruments; when played, it produces a sound that mimics a jaguar's growl.[193]
Visual arts by Indigenous peoples of the Americas comprise a major category in the world art collection. Contributions include pottery, paintings, jewelry, weavings, sculptures, basketry, carvings, and beadwork.[194] Because too many artists were posing as Native Americans and Alaska Natives[195] to profit from the cachet of Indigenous art in the United States, the U.S. passed the Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990, requiring artists to prove that they were enrolled in a state or federally recognized tribe. To support the ongoing practice of American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian arts and cultures in the United States,[196] the Ford Foundation, arts advocates, and American Indian tribes created an endowment seed fund and established a national Native Arts and Cultures Foundation in 2007.[197][198]
After the entry of the Spaniards, the process of spiritual conquest was favored, among other things, by the liturgical musical service to which the natives, whose musical gifts came to surprise the missionaries, were integrated. The musical gifts of the natives were of such magnitude that they soon learned the rules of counterpoint and polyphony and even the virtuous handling of the instruments. This helped to ensure that it was not necessary to bring more musicians from Spain, which significantly annoyed the clergy.[199]
The solution that was proposed was not to employ but a certain number of indigenous people in the musical service, not to teach them counterpoint, not to allow them to play certain instruments (brass breaths, for example, in Oaxaca, Mexico) and, finally, not to import more instruments so that the indigenous people would not have access to them. The latter was not an obstacle to the musical enjoyment of the natives, who experienced the making of instruments, particularly rubbed strings (violins and double basses) or plucked (third). It is there where we can find the origin of what is now called traditional music whose instruments have their tuning and a typical Western structure.[200]
The following table provides estimates for each country or territory in the Americas of the populations of Indigenous people and those with partial Indigenous ancestry, each expressed as a percentage of the overall population. The total percentage obtained by adding both of these categories is also given.
Note: these categories are inconsistently defined and measured differently from country to country. Some figures are based on the results of population-wide genetic surveys while others are based on self-identification or observational estimation.
Indigenous peoples in Canada (also known as Aboriginals)[227] are the Indigenous peoples within the boundaries of Canada. They comprise the First Nations,[228] Inuit,[229] and Métis,[230] representing roughly 5.0% of the total Canadian population. There are over 600 recognized First Nations governments or bands with distinctive cultures, languages, art, and music.[231][232]
Old Crow Flats and Bluefish Caves are some of the earliest known sites of human habitation in Canada. The characteristics of Indigenous cultures in Canada prior to Europen colonization included permanent settlements,[233] agriculture,[234] civic and ceremonial architecture,[235] complex societal hierarchies, and trading networks.[236] Métis nations of mixed ancestry originated in the mid-17th century when First Nations and Inuit people married Europeans, primarily the French colonizers.[237] First Nations and Métis peoples played a critical part in the development of European colonies in Canada, particularly for their role in assisting Europeans during the North American fur trade.
Various Aboriginal laws, treaties, and legislation have been enacted between European immigrants and Indigenous groups across Canada. The impact of settler colonialism in Canada can be seen in its culture, history, politics, laws, and legislatures.[238] This led to the systematic abolishment of Indigenous languages, traditions, religion and the degradation of Indigenous communities that has been described as a genocide of Indigenous peoples.[239]
The modern Indigenous right to self government provides for Indigenous self-government in Canada and the management of their historical, cultural, political, health care and economic control aspects within Indigenous communities. National Indigenous Peoples Day recognizes the vast cultures and contributions of Indigenous peoples to the history of Canada.[240] First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples of all backgrounds have become prominent figures and have served as role models in the Indigenous community and help to shape the Canadian cultural identity.[241]The Greenlandic Inuit (Kalaallisut: kalaallit, Tunumiisut: tunumiit, Inuktun: inughuit) are the Indigenous and most populous ethnic group in Greenland.[242] This means that Denmark has one officially recognized Indigenous group. the Inuit – the Greenlandic Inuit of Greenland and the Greenlandic people in Denmark (Inuit residing in Denmark).
Approximately 89 percent of Greenland's population of 57,695 is Greenlandic Inuit, or 51,349 people as of 2012[update].[243][244] Ethnographically, they consist of three major groups:
The territory of modern-day Mexico was home to numerous Indigenous civilizations before the arrival of the Spanish conquistadores: The Olmecs, who flourished from between 1200 BCE to about 400 BCE in the coastal regions of the Gulf of Mexico; the Zapotecs and the Mixtecs, who held sway in the mountains of Oaxaca and the Isthmus of Tehuantepec; the Maya in the Yucatán (and into neighboring areas of contemporary Central America); the Purépecha in present-day Michoacán and surrounding areas, and the Aztecs/Mexica, who, from their central capital at Tenochtitlan, dominated much of the center and south of the country (and the non-Aztec inhabitants of those areas) when Hernán Cortés first landed at Veracruz.
In contrast to what was the general rule in the rest of North America, the history of the colony of New Spain was one of racial intermingling (mestizaje). Mestizos, which in Mexico designate people who do not identify culturally with any Indigenous grouping, quickly came to account for a majority of the colony's population. Today, Mestizos in Mexico of mixed indigenous and European ancestry (with a minor African contribution) are still a majority of the population. Genetic studies vary over whether indigenous or European ancestry predominates in the Mexican Mestizo population.[245][246] In the 2020 INEGI census, 23.2 million people (19.4% of the Mexican population aged 3 years and older) self-identified as indigenous.[247] Somewhat contradictorily, in the same 2020 census, 11.8 million people (9.3% of the Mexican population) were determined to be indigenous by the Mexican government based on the language spoken in their households.[248] The indigenous population is distributed throughout the territory of Mexico but is especially concentrated in the Sierra Madre del Sur, the Yucatán Peninsula, and the most remote and difficult-to-access areas, such as the Sierra Madre Oriental, the Sierra Madre Occidental, and neighboring areas.[249] The CDI identifies 62 Indigenous groups in Mexico, each with a unique language.[250][251]
In the states of Chiapas and Oaxaca and the interior of the Yucatán Peninsula, a large amount of the population is of Indigenous descent with the largest ethnic group being Mayan with a population of 900,000.[252] Large Indigenous minorities, including Aztecs or Nahua, Purépechas, Mazahua, Otomi, and Mixtecs are also present in the central regions of Mexico. In the Northern and Bajio regions of Mexico, Indigenous people are a small minority.
The General Law of Linguistic Rights of the Indigenous Peoples grants all Indigenous languages spoken in Mexico, regardless of the number of speakers, the same validity as Spanish in all territories in which they are spoken, and Indigenous peoples are entitled to request some public services and documents in their native languages.[253] Along with Spanish, the law has granted them—more than 60 languages—the status of "national languages". The law includes all Indigenous languages of the Americas regardless of origin; that is, it includes the Indigenous languages of ethnic groups non-native to the territory. The National Commission for the Development of Indigenous Peoples recognizes the language of the Kickapoo, who immigrated from the United States[254] and recognizes the languages of the Indigenous refugees from Guatemala.[255] The Mexican government has promoted and established bilingual primary and secondary education in some Indigenous rural communities. Nonetheless, of the Indigenous peoples in Mexico, 93% are either native speakers or bilingual second-language speakers of Spanish with only about 62.4% of them (or 5.4% of the country's population) speaking an Indigenous language and about a sixth do not speak Spanish (0.7% of the country's population).[256]
The Indigenous peoples in Mexico have the right of free determination under the second article of the constitution. According to this article, the Indigenous peoples are granted:[257]
amongst other rights.
Indigenous peoples in what is now the contiguous United States, including their descendants, were commonly called American Indians, or simply Indians domestically and since the late 20th century the term Native American came into common use. In Alaska, Indigenous peoples belong to 11 cultures with 11 languages. These include the St. Lawrence Island Yupik, Iñupiat, Athabaskan, Yup'ik, Cup'ik, Unangax, Alutiiq, Eyak, Haida, Tsimshian, and Tlingit,[258] and are collectively called Alaska Natives. They include Native American peoples as well as Inuit, who are distinct but occupy areas of the region.
The United States has authority over Indigenous Polynesian people, which include Hawaiians, Marshallese (Micronesian), and Samoan; politically they are classified as Pacific Islander Americans. They are geographically, genetically, and culturally distinct from Indigenous peoples of the mainland continents of the Americas.
In the 2020 census 2.9% of the U.S. population claimed to have some degree of Native American heritage. When answering a question about racial background, 3.7 million people identified solely as "American Indian or Alaska Native", while another 5.9 million did so in combination with other races.[259] Aztecs were the largest single Native American group in the 2020 census, while Cherokee was the largest group in combination with any other race.[260] Tribes have established their criteria for membership, which are often based on blood quantum, lineal descent, or residency. A minority of Native Americans live in land units called Indian reservations.
Some California and Southwestern tribes, such as the Kumeyaay, Cocopa, Pascua Yaqui, Tohono O'odham, and Apache, span both sides of the US–Mexican border. By treaty, Haudenosaunee people have the legal right to freely cross the US–Canada border. Athabascan, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, Iñupiat, Blackfeet, Nakota, Cree, Anishinaabe, Huron, Lenape, Mi'kmaq, Penobscot, and Haudenosaunee, among others, live in both Canada and the United States, whose international border cut through their common cultural territory.
Mestizos (mixed European-Indigenous) number about 34% of the population; unmixed Maya make up another 10.6% (Kekchi, Mopan, and Yucatec). The Garifuna, who came to Belize in the 19th century from Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, have mixed African, Carib, and Arawak ancestry and make up another 6% of the population.[261]
There are over 114,000 inhabitants of Native American origins, representing 2.4% of the population. Most of them live in secluded reservations, distributed among eight ethnic groups: Quitirrisí (In the Central Valley), Matambú or Chorotega (Guanacaste), Maleku (Northern Alajuela), Bribri (Southern Atlantic), Cabécar (Cordillera de Talamanca), Boruca (Southern Costa Rica) and Ngäbe (Southern Costa Rica long the Panamá border).
These native groups are characterized by their work in wood, like masks, drums, and other artistic figures, as well as fabrics made of cotton.
Their subsistence is based on agriculture, having corn, beans, and plantains as the main crops.[citation needed]
Estimates for El Salvador's indigenous population vary. The last time a reported census had an Indigenous ethnic option was in 2007, which estimated that 0.23% of the population identified as Indigenous.[27] Historically, estimates have claimed higher amounts. A 1930 census stated that 5.6% were Indigenous.[262] By the mid-20th century, there may have been as much as 20% (or 400,000) that would qualify as "Indigenous". Another estimate stated that by the late 1980s, 10% of the population was Indigenous, and another 89% was mestizo (or people of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry).[263]
Much of El Salvador was home to the Pipil, the Lenca, Xinca, and Kakawira. The Pipil lived in western El Salvador, spoke Nawat, and had many settlements there, most noticeably Cuzcatlan. The Pipil had no precious mineral resources, but they did have rich and fertile land that was good for farming. The Spaniards were disappointed not to find gold or jewels in El Salvador as they had in other lands like Guatemala or Mexico, but upon learning of the fertile land in El Salvador, they attempted to conquer it. Noted Meso-American Indigenous warriors to rise militarily against the Spanish included Princes Atonal and Atlacatl of the Pipil people in central El Salvador and Princess Antu Silan Ulap of the Lenca people in eastern El Salvador, who saw the Spanish not as gods but as barbaric invaders. After fierce battles, the Pipil successfully fought off the Spanish army led by Pedro de Alvarado along with their Indigenous allies (the Tlaxcalas), sending them back to Guatemala. After many other attacks with an army reinforced with Indigenous allies, the Spanish were able to conquer Cuzcatlan. After further attacks, the Spanish also conquered the Lenca people. Eventually, the Spaniards intermarried with Pipil and Lenca women, resulting in the mestizo population that would make up the vast majority of the Salvadoran people. Today many Pipil and other Indigenous populations live in the many small towns of El Salvador like Izalco, Panchimalco, Sacacoyo, and Nahuizalco.
Guatemala has one of the largest Indigenous populations in Central America, with approximately 43.6% of the population considering themselves Indigenous.[264] The Indigenous demographic portion of Guatemala's population consists of a majority of Mayan groups and one non-Mayan group. The Mayan language-speaking portion makes up 29.7% of the population and is distributed into 23 groups namely Q'eqchi' 8.3%, K'iche 7.8%, Mam 4.4%, Kaqchikel 3%, Q'anjob'al 1.2%, Poqomchi' 1%, and Other 4%.[264] The Non-Mayan group consists of the Xinca who are another set of Indigenous people making up 1.8% of the population.[264] Other sources indicate that between 50% and 60% of the population could be Indigenous because part of the Mestizo population is predominantly Indigenous.
The Mayan tribes cover a vast geographic area throughout Central America and expand beyond Guatemala into other countries. One could find vast groups of Mayan people in Boca Costa, in the Southern portions of Guatemala, as well as the Western Highlands living together in close communities.[265] Within these communities and outside of them, around 23 Indigenous languages (or Native American Indigenous languages) are spoken as a first language. Of these 23 languages, they only received official recognition by the Government in 2003 under the Law of National Languages.[264] The Law on National Languages recognizes 23 Indigenous languages including Xinca, enforcing that public and government institutions not only translate but also provide services in said languages.[266] It would provide services in Cakchiquel, Garifuna, Kekchi, Mam, Quiche, and Xinca.[267]
The Law of National Languages has been an effort to grant and protect Indigenous people rights not afforded to them previously. Along with the Law of National Languages passed in 2003, in 1996 the Guatemalan Constitutional Court had ratified the ILO Convention 169 on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples.[268] The ILO Convention 169 on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples, is also known as Convention 169. Which is the only International Law regarding Indigenous peoples that Independent countries can adopt. The convention establishes that governments like Guatemala must consult with Indigenous groups before any projects occur on tribal lands.[269]
About 5 percent of the population is of full-blooded Indigenous descent, but as much as 80 percent of Hondurans are mestizo or part-Indigenous with European admixture, and about 10 percent are of Indigenous or African descent.[270] The largest concentrations of Indigenous communities in Honduras are in the westernmost areas facing Guatemala and along the coast of the Caribbean Sea, as well as on the border with Nicaragua.[270] The majority of Indigenous people are Lencas, Miskitos to the east, Mayans, Pech, Sumos, and Tolupan.[270]
About 5 percent of the Nicaraguan population is Indigenous. The largest Indigenous group in Nicaragua is the Miskito people. Their territory extended from Cabo Camarón, Honduras, to La Cruz de Rio Grande, Nicaragua along the Mosquito Coast. There is a native Miskito language, but large numbers speak Miskito Coast Creole, Spanish, Rama, and other languages. Their use of Creole English came about through frequent contact with the British, who colonized the area. Many Miskitos are Christians. Traditional Miskito society was highly structured, politically and otherwise. It had a king, but he did not have total power. Instead, the power was split between himself, a Miskito Governor, a Miskito General, and by the 1750s, a Miskito Admiral. Historical information on Miskito kings is often obscured by the fact that many of the kings were semi-mythical.
Another major Indigenous culture in eastern Nicaragua is the Mayangna (or Sumu) people, counting some 10,000 people.[271] A smaller Indigenous culture in southeastern Nicaragua is the Rama.
Other Indigenous groups in Nicaragua are located in the central, northern, and Pacific areas and they are self-identified as follows: Chorotega, Cacaopera (or Matagalpa), Xiu-Subtiaba, and Nicarao.[272]
Indigenous peoples of Panama, or Native Panamanians, are the native peoples of Panama. According to the 2010 census, they make up 12.3% of the overall population of 3.4 million, or just over 418,000 people. The Ngäbe and Buglé comprise half of the indigenous peoples of Panama.[273]
Many of the Indigenous Peoples live on comarca indígenas,[274] which are administrative regions for areas with substantial Indigenous populations. Three comarcas (Comarca Emberá-Wounaan, Guna Yala, Ngäbe-Buglé) exist as equivalent to a province, with two smaller comarcas (Guna de Madugandí and Guna de Wargandí) subordinate to a province and considered equivalent to a corregimiento (municipality).
In 2005, the Indigenous population living in Argentina (known as pueblos originarios) numbered about 600,329 (1.6% of the total population); this figure includes 457,363 people who self-identified as belonging to an Indigenous ethnic group and 142,966 who identified themselves as first-generation descendants of an Indigenous people.[275] The ten most populous Indigenous peoples are the Mapuche (113,680 people), the Kolla (70,505), the Toba (69,452), the Guaraní (68,454), the Wichi (40,036), the Diaguita–Calchaquí (31,753), the Mocoví (15,837), the Huarpe (14,633), the Comechingón (10,863) and the Tehuelche (10,590). Minor but important peoples are the Quechua (6,739), the Charrúa (4,511), the Pilagá (4,465), the Chané (4,376), and the Chorote (2,613). The Selk'nam (Ona) people are now virtually extinct in its pure form. The languages of the Diaguita, Tehuelche, and Selk'nam nations have become extinct or virtually extinct: the Cacán language (spoken by Diaguitas) in the 18th century and the Selk'nam language in the 20th century; one Tehuelche language (Southern Tehuelche) is still spoken by a handful of elderly people.
In Bolivia, the 2012 National Census reported that 41% of residents over the age of 15 are of Indigenous origin. Some 3.7% report growing up with an Indigenous mother tongue but do not identify as Indigenous.[276] When both of these categories are totaled, and children under 15, some 66.4% of Bolivia's population was recorded as Indigenous in the 2001 Census.[277]
The 2021 National Census, recognizes 38 cultures, each with its language, as part of a pluri-national state. Some groups, including CONAMAQ (the National Council of Ayllus and Markas of Qullasuyu), draw ethnic boundaries within the Quechua- and Aymara-speaking population, resulting in a total of 50 Indigenous peoples native to Bolivia.
The largest Indigenous ethnic groups are Quechua, about 2.5 million people; Aymara, 2 million; Chiquitano, 181,000; Guaraní, 126,000; and Mojeño, 69,000. Some 124,000 belong to smaller Indigenous groups.[278] The Constitution of Bolivia, enacted in 2009, recognizes 36 cultures, each with its language, as part of a pluri-national state. Some groups, including CONAMAQ (the National Council of Ayllus and Markas of Qullasuyu), draw ethnic boundaries within the Quechua- and Aymara-speaking population, resulting in a total of 50 Indigenous peoples native to Bolivia.
Large numbers of Bolivian highland peasants retained Indigenous language, culture, customs, and communal organization throughout the Spanish conquest and the post-independence period. They mobilized to resist various attempts at the dissolution of communal landholdings and used legal recognition of "empowered caciques" to further communal organization. Indigenous revolts took place frequently until 1953.[279] While the National Revolutionary Movement government began in 1952 and discouraged people identifying as Indigenous (reclassifying rural people as campesinos, or peasants), renewed ethnic and class militancy re-emerged in the Katarista movement beginning in the 1970s.[280] Many lowland Indigenous peoples, mostly in the east, entered national politics through the 1990 March for Territory and Dignity organized by the CIDOB confederation. That march successfully pressured the national government to sign the ILO Convention 169 and to begin the still-ongoing process of recognizing and giving official titles to Indigenous territories. The 1994 Law of Popular Participation granted "grassroots territorial organizations;" these are recognized by the state and have certain rights to govern local areas.
Some radio and television programs are produced in the Quechua and Aymara languages. The constitutional reform in 1997 recognized Bolivia as a multi-lingual, pluri-ethnic society and introduced education reform. In 2005, for the first time in the country's history, an Indigenous Aymara, Evo Morales, was elected as president.
Morales began work on his "Indigenous autonomy" policy, which he launched in the eastern lowlands department on 3 August 2009. Bolivia was the first nation in the history of South America to affirm the right of Indigenous people to self-government.[281] Speaking in Santa Cruz Department, the President called it "a historic day for the peasant and Indigenous movement", saying that, though he might make errors, he would "never betray the fight started by our ancestors and the fight of the Bolivian people".[281] A vote on further autonomy for jurisdictions took place in December 2009, at the same time as general elections to office. The issue divided the country.[282]
At that time, Indigenous peoples voted overwhelmingly for more autonomy: five departments that had not already done so voted for it;[283][284] as did Gran Chaco Province in Taríja, for regional autonomy;[285] and 11 of 12 municipalities that had referendums on this issue.[283]
Indigenous peoples of Brazil make up 0.4% of Brazil's population, or about 817,000 people, but millions of Brazilians are mestizo or have some Indigenous ancestry.[286] Indigenous peoples are found in the entire territory of Brazil, although in the 21st century, the majority of them live in Indigenous territories in the North and Center-Western parts of the country. On 18 January 2007, Fundação Nacional do Índio (FUNAI) reported that it had confirmed the presence of 67 different uncontacted tribes in Brazil, up from 40 in 2005. Brazil is now the nation that has the largest number of uncontacted tribes, and the island of New Guinea is second.[286]
The Washington Post reported in 2007, "As has been proved in the past when uncontacted tribes are introduced to other populations and the microbes they carry, maladies as simple as the common cold can be deadly. In the 1970s, 185 members of the Panara tribe died within two years of discovery after contracting such diseases as flu and chickenpox, leaving only 69 survivors."[287]
According to the 2012 Census, 10% of the Chilean population, including the Rapa Nui (a Polynesian people) of Easter Island, was Indigenous, although most show varying degrees of mixed heritage.[288] Many are descendants of the Mapuche and live in Santiago, Araucanía, and Los Lagos Region. The Mapuche successfully fought off defeat in the first 300–350 years of Spanish rule during the Arauco War. Relations with the new Chilean Republic were good until the Chilean state decided to occupy their lands. During the Occupation of Araucanía, the Mapuche surrendered to the country's army in the 1880s. Their land was opened to settlement by Chileans and Europeans. Conflict over Mapuche land rights continues to the present.
Other groups include the Aymara, the majority of whom live in Bolivia and Peru, with smaller numbers in the Arica-Parinacota and Tarapacá regions, and the Atacama people (Atacameños), who reside mainly in El Loa.
A minority today within Colombia's mostly Mestizo and White Colombian population, Indigenous peoples living in Colombia, consist of around 85 distinct cultures and around 1,905,617 people, however, it is likely much higher.[289][290] A variety of collective rights for Indigenous peoples are recognized in the 1991 Constitution. One of the influences is the Muisca culture, a subset of the larger Chibcha ethnic group, famous for their use of gold, which led to the legend of El Dorado. At the time of the Spanish conquest, the Muisca were the largest Indigenous civilization geographically between the Inca and the Aztec empires.
Ecuador was the site of many Indigenous cultures, and civilizations of different proportions. An early sedentary culture, known as the Valdivia culture, developed in the coastal region, while the Caras and the Quitus unified to form an elaborate civilization that ended at the birth of the Capital Quito. The Cañaris near Cuenca were the most advanced, and most feared by the Inca, due to their fierce resistance to the Incan expansion. Their architectural remains were later destroyed by the Spaniards and the Incas.
Between 55% and 65% of Ecuador's population consists of Mestizos of mixed indigenous and European ancestry while indigenous people comprise about 25%.[291] Genetic analysis indicates that Ecuadorian Mestizos are of predominantly indigenous ancestry.[292] Approximately 96.4% of Ecuador's Indigenous population are Highland Quichuas living in the valleys of the Sierra region. Primarily consisting of the descendants of peoples conquered by the Incas, they are Kichwa speakers and include the Caranqui, the Otavalos, the Cayambe, the Quitu-Caras, the Panzaleo, the Chimbuelo, the Salasacan, the Tugua, the Puruhá, the Cañari, and the Saraguro. Linguistic evidence suggests that the Salascan and the Saraguro may have been the descendants of Bolivian ethnic groups transplanted to Ecuador as mitimaes.
Coastal groups, including the Awá, Chachi, and the Tsáchila, make up 0.24% percent of the Indigenous population, while the remaining 3.35 percent live in the Oriente and consist of the Oriente Kichwa (the Canelo and the Quijos), the Shuar, the Huaorani, the Siona-Secoya, the Cofán, and the Achuar.
In 1986, Indigenous peoples formed the first "truly" national political organization. The Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE) has been the primary political institution of Indigenous peoples since then and is now the second-largest political party in the nation. It has been influential in national politics, contributing to the ouster of presidents Abdalá Bucaram in 1997 and Jamil Mahuad in 2000.
French Guiana is home to approximately 10,000 indigenous peoples, such as the Kalina and Lokono. Over time, the indigenous population has protested against various environmental issues, such as illegal gold mining, pollution, and a drastic decrease in wild game.
During the early stages of colonization, the indigenous peoples in Guyana partook in trade relations with Dutch settlers and assisted in militia services such as hunting down escaped slaves for the British, which continued until the 19th century. Indigenous Guyanese people are responsible for the invention of the canoe as well as Guyanese pepperpot and the foundation of the Alleluia church.
Guyana's indigenous peoples have been recognized under the Constitution of 1965 and comprise 9.16% of the overall population.
The vast majority of indigenous peoples in Paraguay are concentrated in the Gran Chaco region in the northwest of the country, with the Guaraní making up the majority of the indigenous population in Paraguay. The Guaraní language is recognized as an official language alongside Spanish, with approximately 90% of the population speaking Guaraní. The indigenous population in Paraguay suffers from several social issues such as low literacy rates and inaccessibility to safe drinking water and electricity.
According to the 2017 Census, the Indigenous population in Peru makes up approximately 26%.[5] However, this does not include Mestizos of mixed indigenous and European descent, who make up the majority of the population. Genetic testing indicates that Peruvian Mestizos are of predominantly indigenous ancestry.[293] Indigenous traditions and customs have shaped the way Peruvians live and see themselves today. Cultural citizenship—or what Renato Rosaldo has called, "the right to be different and to belong, in a democratic, participatory sense" (1996:243)—is not yet very well developed in Peru. This is perhaps no more apparent than in the country's Amazonian regions where Indigenous societies continue to struggle against state-sponsored economic abuses, cultural discrimination, and pervasive violence.[294]
According to the 2012 census, the indigenous population of Suriname numbers around 20,000, amounting to 3.8% of the population. The most numerous indigenous groups in Suriname primarily comprise the Lokono, Kalina, Tiriyó, and Wayana.
Unlike most other Spanish-speaking countries, indigenous peoples are not a significant element in Uruguay, as the entire indigenous population is virtually extinct, with a few exceptions such as the Guaraní. Approximately 2.4% of the population in Uruguay is reported to have indigenous ancestry.[224]
Most Venezuelans have some degree of indigenous heritage even if they may not identify as such. The 2011 census estimated that around 52% of the population identified as mestizo. But those who identify as Indigenous, from being raised in those cultures, make up only around 2% of the total population. The Indigenous peoples speak around 29 different languages and many more dialects. As some of the ethnic groups are very small, their native languages are in danger of becoming extinct in the next decades. The most important Indigenous groups are the Ye'kuana, the Wayuu, the Kali'na, the Ya̧nomamö, the Pemon, and the Warao. The most advanced Indigenous peoples to have lived within the boundaries of present-day Venezuela are thought to have been the Timoto-cuicas, who lived in the Venezuelan Andes. Historians estimate that there were between 350 thousand and 500 thousand Indigenous inhabitants at the time of Spanish colonization. The most densely populated area was the Andean region (Timoto-cuicas), thanks to their advanced agricultural techniques and ability to produce a surplus of food.
The 1999 constitution of Venezuela gives indigenous peoples special rights, although the vast majority of them still live in very critical conditions of poverty. The government provides primary education in their languages in public schools to some of the largest groups, in efforts to continue the languages.
The indigenous population of the Caribbean islands consisted of the Taíno of the Lucayan Archipelago, the Greater Antilles and the northern Lesser Antilles, the Kalinago of the Lesser Antilles, the Ciguayo and Macorix of parts of Hispaniola, and the Guanahatabey of western Cuba. The overall population suffered the most adverse colonial effects out of all the indigenous populations in the Americas, as the Kalinago have been reduced to a few islands in the Lesser Antilles such as Dominica and the Taíno are culturally extinct, though a large proportion of populations in Greater Antillean islands such as Puerto Rico and Cuba to a lesser extent,[295] possesses degrees of Taíno ancestry. The Cayman Islands were the only island group in the Caribbean to have remained unsettled by indigenous peoples before the colonial era.[296]
Historically, during the Spanish colonization of the Philippines, the territory was ruled as a province of the Mexico-centered Viceroyalty of New Spain and thus many Mexicans including those of indgenous Aztec and Tlaxcalan descent were sent as colonists there.[297]: Chpt. 6 According to a genetic study by the National Geographic around 2% of the Philippine population are Native American in descent.[298][299]
Since the late 20th century, Indigenous peoples in the Americas have become more politically active in asserting their treaty rights and expanding their influence. Some have organized to achieve some sort of self-determination and preservation of their cultures. Organizations such as the Coordinator of Indigenous Organizations of the Amazon River Basin and the Indian Council of South America are examples of movements that are overcoming national borders to reunite Indigenous populations, for instance, those across the Amazon Basin. Similar movements for Indigenous rights can also be seen in Canada and the United States, with movements like the International Indian Treaty Council and the accession of native Indigenous groups into the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization.
There has been a recognition of Indigenous movements on an international scale. The membership of the United Nations voted to adopt the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, despite dissent from some of the stronger countries of the Americas.
In Colombia, various Indigenous groups have protested the denial of their rights. People organized a march in Cali in October 2008 to demand the government live up to promises to protect Indigenous lands, defend the Indigenous against violence, and reconsider the free trade pact with the United States.[300]
The first Indigenous President of the Americas was José María Melo, of Pijao descent, and led Colombia in 1854 starting on April 17, 1854. José was born on October 9, 1800, in Chaparral, Tolima, and before his presidency, he fought alongside Simon Bolivar in the Spanish-American Wars of Independence. José María Melo led the Republic of New Granada during the Colombian Civil War of 1854 but eventually lost and was exiled on December 4, 1854.[301]
The first Indigenous candidate to be democratically elected as head of a country in the Americas was Benito Juárez, a Zapotec Mexican who was elected President of Mexico in 1858 and led the country until 1872 and led the country to victory during the Second French intervention in Mexico.[302]
In 1930 Luis Miguel Sánchez Cerro became the first Peruvian President with Indigenous Peruvian ancestry and the first in South America.[303] He came to power in a military coup.
In 2005, Evo Morales of the Aymara people was the first Indigenous candidate elected as president of Bolivia and the first elected in South America.[304]
Genetic history of Indigenous peoples of the Americas primarily focuses on Human Y-chromosome DNA haplogroups and Human mitochondrial DNA haplogroups. "Y-DNA" is passed solely along the patrilineal line, from father to son, while "mtDNA" is passed down the matrilineal line, from mother to offspring of both sexes. Neither recombines and thus Y-DNA and mtDNA change only by chance mutation at each generation with no intermixture between parents' genetic material.[307] Autosomal "atDNA" markers are also used but differ from mtDNA or Y-DNA in that they overlap significantly.[308] AtDNA is generally used to measure the average continent-of-ancestry genetic admixture in the entire human genome and related isolated populations.[308]
Genetic comparisons of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosome of Native Americans to that of certain Siberian and Central Asian peoples (specifically Paleo-Siberians, Turkic, and historically the Okunev culture) have led Russian researcher I.A. Zakharov to believe that, among all the previously studied Asian peoples, it is "the peoples living between Altai and Lake Baikal along the Sayan mountains that are genetically closest to" Indigenous Americans.[309]
Some scientific evidence links them to North Asian peoples, specifically the Indigenous peoples of Siberia, such as the Ket, Selkup, Chukchi, and Koryak peoples. Indigenous peoples of the Americas have been linked to some extent to North Asian populations by the distribution of blood types, and in genetic composition as reflected by molecular data, and limited DNA studies.[310][311][312]
The common occurrence of the Asian mtDNA haplogroups A, B, C, and D among eastern Asian and Native American populations has been noted.[313] Some subclades of C and D that have been found in the limited populations of Native Americans who have agreed to DNA testing[311][312] bear some resemblance to the C and D subclades in Mongolian, Amur, Japanese, Korean, and Ainu populations.[313][314]
Available genetic patterns lead to two main theories of genetic episodes affecting the Indigenous peoples of the Americas; first with the initial peopling of the Americas, and secondly with European colonization of the Americas.[315][316][317] The former is the determinant factor for the number of gene lineages, zygosity mutations, and founding haplotypes present in today's Indigenous peoples of the Americas populations.[316]
The most popular theory among anthropologists is the Bering Strait theory, of human settlement of the New World occurring in stages from the Bering Sea coastline, with a possible initial layover of 10,000 to 20,000 years in Beringia for the small founding population.[318][319][320] The micro-satellite diversity and distributions of the Y lineage specific to South America indicate that certain Indigenous peoples of the Americas populations have been isolated since the initial colonization of the region.[321] The Na-Dené, Inuit, and Indigenous populations of Alaska exhibit haplogroup Q (Y-DNA) mutations, however are distinct from other Indigenous peoples of the Americas with various mtDNA and atDNA mutations.[322][323][324] This suggests that the earliest migrants into the northern extremes of North America and Greenland derived from later migrant populations.[325][326]
Multiple recent findings on autosomal DNA and full genome revealed more information about the formation, settlement, and external relationships of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas to other populations. Native Americans are very closely related to the Paleosiberian tribes of Siberia, and to the ancient samples of the Mal'ta–Buret' culture (Ancient North Eurasians) as well as to the Ancient Beringians. Native Americans also share a relatively higher genetic affinity with East Asian peoples. Native American genetic ancestry is occasionally dubbed as "Amerindian". This type of ancestry largely overlaps with "Paleosiberian" ancestry but is differentiated from "Neo-Siberian" ancestry which represents historical expansions from Northeast Asia and is today widespread among Siberian populations. The ancestors of Native Americans used a single migration route, most likely through Beringia, and subsequently populated all of the Americas in a time range between 25,000 and 15,000 years ago. Possible contact between Native Americans and Polynesians dates back to 1,400 years ago. Previously hypothesized "Paleo-Indian" groups turned out to be genetically identical to modern Native Americans. The controversial claim that the first peoples came from Europe via the North Atlantic, based on an ostensible similarity in stone-tool technology between the Solutrean culture of Pleistocene Europe and Clovis in North America, was undermined by the genome of the Anzick Clovis child, which sits squarely on the branch of Ancestral Native American peoples. No ancient or present-day genome (or mtDNA or Y chromosome marker) in the Americas has shown any direct affinities to Upper Palaeolithic European populations.[327][328][329][330][331][332][333][334]
The date for the formation of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas gene pool ranges from 36,000 to 25,000 years ago, with their internal diverging being around 21,000 years ago, during the settlement of the Americas.[336] Native Americans formed from the admixture of a lineage that diverged from Ancient East Asian people around 36,000 years ago somewhere in Southern China, and subsequently migrated northwards into Siberia where they merged with a Paleolithic Siberian population known as Ancient North Eurasians (ANE), deeply related to European hunter-gatherers, giving rise to both Indigenous peoples of Siberia and Ancestral Native Americans. Both Paleo-Siberians and Ancestral Native Americans derive between 32 and 44% of their ancestry from Ancient North Eurasians (ANE), and 56–68% ancestry from Ancient East Asians.[337][338][339][340] Based on a 2023 mitochondrial DNA study, a subsequent wave of migration from Northern China, originating near the present-day cities of Beijing and Tianjin, occurred as recently as 9000 BCE, following a previously unknown coastal route from Asia to America.[341]
The Canadian Constitution recognizes three groups of Aboriginal people – Indians (First Nations), Métis and Inuit. These separate peoples have unique heritages, languages, cultural practices, and spiritual beliefs
Native is a word similar in meaning to Aboriginal. Native Peoples or First peoples is a collective term to describe the descendants of the original peoples of North America.
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: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of September 2024 (link)It is clear that in pre-Columbian times some groups struggled to survive and often suffered food shortages and famines, while others enjoyed a varied and substantial diet.
In Tenochtitlan, during the famine of 1 Rabbit in 1454, Moctezuma Ilhuicamina distributed food from the royal granaries to the poor. When the stores ran out, he gave permission for the populace to leave the city to find food elsewhere and people left. The populations of Texcoco, Chalco, Xochimilco, and Tepanecapan also fled their cities. The Maya Lowlands appear to have suffered a famine at the same time, and the cities of Chichen Itza, Mayapan, and Uxmal appear to have been all abandoned simultaneously [...].
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: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)Note: Indigenous population was identified as the total population in households where the head of the household, his or her spouse or any of their ascendants claimed to speak an Indigenous language.
[Page 1] ABSTRACT: Filipinos represent a significant contemporary demographic group globally, yet they are underrepresented in the forensic anthropological literature. Given the complex population history of the Philippines, it is important to ensure that traditional methods for assessing the biological profile are appropriate when applied to these peoples. Here we analyze the classification trends of a modern Filipino sample (n = 110) when using the Fordisc 3.1 (FD3) software. We hypothesize that Filipinos represent an admixed population drawn largely from Asian and marginally from European parental gene pools, such that FD3 will classify these individuals morphometrically into reference samples that reflect a range of European admixture, in quantities from small to large. Our results show the greatest classification into Asian reference groups (72.7%), followed by Hispanic (12.7%), Indigenous American (7.3%), African (4.5%), and European (2.7%) groups included in FD3. This general pattern did not change between males and females. Moreover, replacing the raw craniometric values with their shape variables did not significantly alter the trends already observed. These classification trends for Filipino crania provide useful information for casework interpretation in forensic laboratory practice. Our findings can help biological anthropologists to better understand the evolutionary, population historical, and statistical reasons for FD3-generated classifications. The results of our study indicate that ancestry estimation in forensic anthropology would benefit from population-focused research that gives consideration to histories of colonialism and periods of admixture.
'Our results show that of all previously studied Asian peoples it is the peoples living between Altai and Lake Baikal along the Sayan mountains that are genetically closest to Amerindians' – says I.A. Zakharo
Our finding of no excess allele sharing with non-Native American populations in the ancient samples is also striking as many of these individuals—including those at Lapa do Santo—have a "Paleoamerican" cranial morphology that has been suggested to be evidence of the spread of a substructured population of at least two different Native American source populations from Asia to the Americas (von Cramon-Taubadel et al., 2017). Our finding that early Holocene individuals with such a morphology are consistent with deriving all their ancestry from the same homogeneous ancestral population as other Native Americans extends the finding of Raghavan et al., 2015 who came to a similar conclusion after analyzing Native Americans inferred to have Paleoamerican morphology who lived within the last millennium.
It is now evident that the initial dispersal involved the movement from northeast Asia. The first peoples, once south of the continental ice sheets, spread widely, expanded rapidly and branched into multiple populations. Their descendants—over the next fifteen millennia—experienced varying degrees of isolation, admixture, continuity and replacement, and their genomes help to illuminate the relationships among major subgroups of Native American populations. Notably, all ancient individuals in the Americas, save for later-arriving Arctic peoples, are more closely related to contemporary Indigenous American individuals than to any other population elsewhere, which challenges the claim—which is based on anatomical evidence—that there was an early, non-Native American population in the Americas.
The team discovered that the Spirit Cave remains came from a Native American while dismissing a longstanding theory that a group called Paleoamericans existed in North America before Native Americans.