The following is a guide to various terms associated with First Nations people, issues and treaties. Please note that individual preferences may vary and should be respected when known. When unsure, it is polite and appropriate to ask how a person, band or council wishes to be addressed.

ABORIGINAL - The term "Aboriginal" is appropriate when referring to matters that affect First Nations (Indian) and Métis peoples. The word is most appropriately used as an adjective (e.g., Aboriginal person).

ABORIGINAL PEOPLES - Aboriginal Peoples are the descendants of the original inhabitants of North America. The Canadian Constitution recognizes three groups of Aboriginals – Indians, Métis and Inuit. They are three separate peoples with unique heritages, languages, cultural practices and spiritual beliefs.

ABORIGINAL PERSON - A descendant of the original inhabitants of Canada, who continues to have an Aboriginal interest in the traditional lands held by his or her ancestors. All Aboriginal interests are protected under the Constitution Act, 1982.

ABORIGINAL RIGHTS - Rights that some Aboriginal peoples of Canada hold as a result of their ancestors' long-standing use and occupancy of the land, e.g., to hunt, trap and fish on ancestral lands. Legally, the existence of specific Aboriginal rights are determined on a case-by-case basis.

Refer to practices, traditions or customs ("activity[ies]") which are integral to the distinctive culture of an Aboriginal society and were practiced prior to European contact, meaning they were rooted in the pre-contact society (the date is no longer prior to 1846, the date British sovereignty was asserted in B.C. by the signing of the Oregon Boundary Treaty);

• must be practiced for a substantial period of time to have formed an integral part of the particular Aboriginal society's culture;
• must be an activity that is a central, defining feature which is independently significant to the Aboriginal society;
• must be distinctive (not unique), meaning it must be distinguishing and characteristic of that culture;
• must be based on an actual activity related to a resource: the significance of the activity is relevant but cannot itself constitute the claim to an Aboriginal right;
• must be given a priority after conservation measures (not amounting to an exclusive right);
• must meet a continuity requirement, meaning that the Aboriginal society must demonstrate that the connection with the land in its customs and laws has continued to the present day;
• may be the exercise in a modern form of an activity that existed prior to European contact;
• may include the right to fish, pick berries, hunt and trap for sustenance, social and ceremonial purposes (for example, ceremonial uses of trees and wildlife locations)
• may include an Aboriginal right to sell or trade commercially in a resource where there is evidence to show that the activity existed prior to European contact "on a scale best characterized as commercial" and that such activity is an integral part of the Aboriginal society's distinctive culture;
• may be adapted in response to the arrival of Europeans if the activity was an integral part of the Aboriginal society's culture prior to European contact;
• do not include an activity that solely exists because of the influence of European contact; and
• do not include aspects of Aboriginal society that are true of every society such as eating to survive.

Aboriginal rights arise from the prior occupation of land, but they also arise from the prior social organization and distinctive cultures of Aboriginal peoples on that land. Treaty negotiations will translate Aboriginal rights into contemporary terms.

ABORIGINAL SELF-GOVERNMENT - Governments designed, established and administered by Aboriginal peoples.

ABORIGINAL TITLE - A legal term that recognizes Aboriginal interest in the land. It is based on a long-standing use and occupancy of the land as descendants of the original inhabitants of Canada

BAND - A body of Indians declared by the Governor-in-Council to be a band for the purposes of the Indian Act. See First Nations.

BAND CHIEF - The leader of the local Band and Band Council. The Chief is elected by eligible voters of the Band, or by the councillors according to the regulations of the Indian Act.

BAND COUNCIL - The band’s governing body created under the provisions of the Indian Act and delegated under the authority of the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. It has the power of local self-government, but the degree of power varies with each band. They may either be an elected or custom council under the Act. The councillors are elected by eligible members and serve a two-year term.

BAND COUNCIL RESOLUTION - Refers to a written resolution of the Council adopted at a duly convened meeting of the Council.

BILL C-31 - The pre-legislation name of the 1985 Act to Amend the Indian Act. This Act eliminated certain discriminatory provisions of the Indian Act. Bill C-31 enabled people affected by the discriminatory provisions of the old Indian Act to apply to have their Indian status restored.

BAND LIST - A list of persons who are members of a particular band.

BAND MEMBER - An Indian whose name is on a band list or is entitled to have his or her name on a band list.

BAND MEMBERSHIP - What an individual Indian has when he or she is a recognized member of a Band and whose name appears on an approved Band List. Where a Band has adopted its own membership code, it may define who has a right to membership in the Band, so being a status Indian is not necessarily synonymous with being a Band member. Status Indians who are not Band members are listed in the General List.

DOUBLE-MOTHER CLAUSE - An Indian born of a marriage entered into on or after September 4, 1951, lost entitlement to registration at the age of 21 years if his/her mother and paternal grandmother were not recognized as Indians before their marriages. This clause first appeared in 1951 legislation and was eliminated in the 1985 amendments to the Indian Act.

ELDER(S) - Aboriginal persons who are respected and consulted due to their experience, wisdom, knowledge, background and insight. Elder does not necessarily equate with age.

ENFRANCHISMENT - A process by which an Indian gave up Indian status and band membership. Enfranchisement was abolished in the 1985 amendments to the Indian Act.

ENTITLEMENT - The legal right to benefits, income and property that may not be reduced without due process under the law.

FIRST NATIONS - First Nations is a common title used in Canada to describe the various societies of indigenous peoples of North America located in what is now Canada, who are not of Inuit or Métis descent. First Nations is used as a substitute for “band” in referring to any Aboriginal group recognized by the Canadian government under the federal Indian Act of 1876.

FIRST NATIONS PEOPLES - First Nations peoples refers to the Indian people in Canada, both status and non-status. Many Indian people have also adopted the term “First Nation” to replace the word “band.” (Most First Nations are offended by the term “Indian.” They find it demeaning because the term “Indian” was given to the First Nations Peoples by the Europeans.)

FIRST PEOPLES - Aboriginal Peoples in Canada are recognized in the Canadian Constitution Act of 1982 as the Indians (First Nations), Métis and Inuit. The term First Peoples is often used synonymously. As of the 2001 Census there were over 900,000 Aboriginal Peoples in Canada. This includes about 600,000 people of Indian or First Nations descent, 290,000 Métis and 45,000 Inuit.

GENERAL LIST - A list of all persons, registered as Indians in the Indian Register, who are not members of a band.

INDIAN - Indian describes all the Aboriginal Peoples in Canada who are not Inuit or Métis. Indian peoples are one of three groups of people recognized as Aboriginal in the Constitution Act of 1982. The act specifies that Aboriginal Peoples in Canada consist of Indians, Inuit and Métis people. In addition, there are three legal definitions that apply to Indians in Canada: status Indians, non-status Indians and treaty Indians.

INDIAN ACT - This is the Canadian federal legislation, first passed in 1876, that sets out certain federal government obligations, and regulates the management of Indian reserve lands. The Act has been amended several times, most recently in 1985 (see Bill C-31).

INDIAN REGISTER - A centralized record of all persons registered as Indians in Canada. INUIT Inuit are Aboriginal people in northern Canada who live above the tree line in the Northwest Territories, Northern Quebec and Labrador. The word means “people” in the Inuit language, Inuktitut. The singular of Inuit is Inuk. MÉTIS Métis are people of mixed First Nation and European ancestry who identify themselves as Métis people as distinct from First Nations, Inuit or non-Aboriginals. The Métis have a unique culture that draws on their diverse ancestral origins, such as Scottish, French, Ojibway and Cree.

INDIAN RESERVE - Lands owned by the Crown, and held in trust for the use and benefit of an Indian Band, for which they were set apart. The legal title to Indian reserve land is vested in the federal government.

INDIAN STATUS - An individual's legal status as an Indian, as defined by the Indian Act.

INDIGENOUS - Generally used in the international context, "indigenous" refers to peoples who are original to a particular territory. This term is very similar to Aboriginal and has a positive connotation.

INHERENT RIGHT OF SELF-GOVERNMENT - Derived from Aboriginal peoples' use and occupation of certain lands from time immemorial.

INUIT - An Aboriginal people in northern Canada, who live above the tree line in the Northwest Territories, and in Northern Quebec and Labrador. The word means "people" in the Inuit language - Inuktitut. The singular of Inuit is Inuk.

LAND CLAIMS - In 1973, the federal government recognized two broad classes of claims -- comprehensive and specific (see comprehensive claim and specific claim).

MÉTIS - The term refers to Aboriginal people of mixed First Nation and European ancestry who identify themselves as Métis people, as distinct from First Nations people, Inuit or non-Aboriginal people. The Métis have a unique culture that draws on their diverse ancestral origins, such as Scottish, French, Ojibway and Cree.

NATIVE - A term used to refer generally to Aboriginal peoples. The term "Aboriginal person" is preferred to "native".

NON-STATUS INDIAN - A non-status Indian is an Indian person who is not registered as an Indian under the Indian Act. This may be because his or her ancestors were never registered, or because he or she lost status under former provisions of the Indian Act.

PEOPLE - Refers to the general population.

PEOPLES - Refers to peoples who have the right to self-determination, according to International Law.

RESERVATION - Land in the United States set apart by the government for the common use and benefit of an Indian tribe.

RESERVE - Land in Canada set apart by the federal government for the common use and benefits of an Indian band.

REGISTRAR - The government department official who is in charge of the Indian Register and the band lists maintained by the department.

SCRIP - A certificate, offered to persons of Indian ancestry primarily in the Northwest Territories and Prairie provinces, as a one-time payment in money or land in exchange for their Aboriginal rights in and to the land. It is sometimes referred to in legislation as “half-breed lands and money scrip”. Persons who took scrip were not entitled to treaty rights.

STATUS INDIAN - A status Indian is an Indian person who is registered under the Indian Act. The act sets out the requirements for determining whether someone is a status Indian.

TREATY - A formal, ratified agreement or compact.

TREATY BENEFICIARY - An Aboriginal person who, through descent from persons who participated in a designated treaty with the Crown, is entitled to the benefits that flow from the provisions of that treaty. It is generally, but not always, included in the genealogical lists maintained by the federal department of Indian Affairs.

TREATY INDIAN - A treaty Indian is a status Indian who belongs to a First Nation that signed a treaty with the Crown. A treaty Indian can also be a person of Aboriginal ancestry who holds treaty status under the Indian Act, as identified through the municipality codes indicating the registered reserve.

TREATY RIGHTS - Although no two treaties are identical, they usually provide for certain rights including annuities, hunting, reserve lands and other benefits. The rights of treaty Indians depend on the precise conditions of their particular band’s treaty.

TRIBAL COUNCIL - Tribal Councils usually represent a group of bands to facilitate the administration and delivery of local services to their members.

Sources:

• Ontario Secretariat for Aboriginal Affairs
• BC Hydro
• College of Nursing, University of Saskatchewan
• CUPE
• Saskatechewan First Nations and Métis Relations

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