The
Native American name controversy is an ongoing dispute over the acceptable ways to refer to the
indigenous peoples of the Americas and to broad subsets thereof, such as those living in a specific country or sharing certain cultural attributes. Once-common terms like "Indian" remain in use, despite the introduction of terms such as "Native American" during the latter half of the
20th century.
Many English terms have been used or considered for such purposes, such as Red Indians, American Indians (or simply Indians), Native Americans, Original Americans, First Nations, Indigenous Peoples of America, Amerindians, Amerinds, and more. However, none have found universal acceptance. Typical reasons for contesting a name are
and several others. Further complications arise when translating names between different languages, since even words that are closely related linguistically may have very different cultural loads in the respective speaker communities. "The People", "First Men" and "Original People" are the most common translations for various Indigenous American tribes.[1]
In some countries, certain broad names have been defined by law, such as First Nations and Aboriginal Peoples in Canada. Even in those cases, there may be lingering debates on whether certain groups fit the legal definition or not, or whether the name or its definition are adequate.
