Native Americans

Cultural  

1. The descendants of the original inhabitants of North America and South America before the arrival of white settlers from Europe, also called Indians or American Indians. The term Native American is sometimes preferred over Indian because the latter is a misnomer that originated with Columbus, who mistook the inhabitants of America for the people of India. Both terms, however, are accepted.

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In recent years, Native American activism has taken the form of calls for the protection of their tribal or ancestral shrines and artifacts.

Example Sentences

He had fanciful notions about Native Americans until he got to know some as people.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026

So citizenship was not always a great thing for Native Americans.

From Slate • Mar. 16, 2026

Greenpeace maintains that it played only a small and peaceful role in the movement, which was led by Native Americans.

From Barron's • Feb. 27, 2026

In early voyages to the New World, Euro Americans brought their ideas about identity, spirituality, ethnicity and skin color as they first encountered Native Americans.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 2, 2026

But that boom came much too late to prepare Native Americans of the United States for the impending disaster of European colonization.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond