LibGuides: Native Americans: Native Americans

Suggested Keywords

These words can be used to search the library catalog, databases, and other resources:

Indians
Native American
Indigenous People

As works have become more specific and awareness of individual Native American peoples has increased, the names of the specific groups should be used. For example:

Ais
Apalachee
Calusa
Cherokee
Creek
Miccosukee
Seminole
Timucua
Yemassee

Suggested eBooks at Valencia

Search the Library Catalog to find books and ebooks at Valencia College Library.

You can use some the suggested keywords above.

Below are just a few suggestions.

Native American Representations by Gretchen M. Bataille (Editor)
ISBN: 9780803261884
Publication Date: 2001-09-01
From Columbus's journal jottings about "Indios" to the image of Sacagawea on the dollar coin, from the marauding Indians portrayed in the traditional western to the appearance of Native Americans in Dances with Wolves, from cigar box caricatures to the Crazy Horse monument rising near Mt. Rushmore, Native Americans have been represented--and misrepresented--over the past five centuries. What such depictions mean--what they say, and what they do, historically, culturally, and ideologically--is the subject of this book.
Native American Voices by Susan Lobo; Steve Talbot; Traci Morris Carlston
ISBN: 9781317346159
Publication Date: 2016-02-19
This reader presents a broad approach to the study of American Indians through the voices and viewpoints of the Native Peoples themselves. Multi-disciplinary and hemispheric in approach, it draws on ethnography, biography, journalism, art, and poetry to familiarize students with the historical and present day experiences of native peoples and nations throughout North and South America all with a focus on themes and issues that are crucial within Indian Country today.
Native American Spirituality by Lee Irwin (Editor)
ISBN: 9780803282612
Publication Date: 2000-11-01
Spirituality may be the most contentious and poorly understood dimension of Native American communities today. For generations the religious beliefs and practices of Native Americans have been the subject of public fascination and scholarly inquiry. Unfortunately, this ongoing interest has all too frequently been fueled by facile generalizations, inaccurate information, or inappropriate methods of investigation. This volume gives considerable attention is given to the appropriateness and value of different interpretive paradigms for Native religion, including both "traditional" religion and Native Christianity.
The Native American World by Donna Hightower-Langston
ISBN: 0471436550
Publication Date: 2003-01-21
Over 300 entries covering major tribes, languages, prominent individuals, and important historical events with more than 100 illustrations, including period photos, line drawings, and portraits. You'll find detailed information on a vast array of topics related to the Native American World, including: Anasazi, Arapaho nation, Basket makers, Burial grounds, Civil Rights Act 1964, Crazy Horse, Desert-Cochise culture, Educational funding, and so much more!
Native American Women by Gretchen M. Bataille (Editor); Laurie Lisa (Editor)
ISBN: 9780415930208
Publication Date: 2001-06-12
This A-Z reference contains 275 biographical entries on Native American women, past and present, from many different walks of life. Written by more than 70 contributors, most of whom are leading American Indian historians, the entries examine the complex and diverse roles of Native American women in contemporary and traditional cultures.

Suggested Databases

Library databases allow you to explore news articles, documentaries, magazine articles, and academic journal articles.

Library databases can be accessed by logging into your Atlas username and password.

American Indian Experience (ABC-CLIO) This link opens in a new window
"Resource exploring the histories and contemporary cultures of the indigenous peoples of the United States. From prehistory to the present day, from the Inuit of the north to the Seminoles of Florida."
Suggested search terms: name(s) of specific group(s)
JSTOR This link opens in a new window
"JSTOR provides access to more than 12 million academic journal articles, books, and primary sources in 75 disciplines."
Suggested terms: name(s) of specific group(s)
Humanities Source (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window
"Humanities Source is a valuable full-text database covering literary, scholarly and creative thought."
Suggested terms: name(s) of specific group(s)
Springer eJournal Collection This link opens in a new window
"Providing researchers with access to millions of scientific documents from journals, books, series, protocols, reference works and proceedings."
Suggested terms: name(s) of specific group(s)

American Indian, Indian, Native American, or Native?

All of these terms are acceptable. The consensus, however, is that whenever possible, Native people prefer to be called by their specific tribal name. In the United States, Native American has been widely used but is falling out of favor with some groups, and the terms American Indian or indigenous American are preferred by many Native people.

November is Native American Heritage Month

On August 3, 1990, President of the United States George H. W. Bush declared the month of November as National American Indian Heritage Month, thereafter commonly referred to as Native American Heritage Month.

Before then, October 10-16, 1976 was the first week of recognition of native peoples in the 200 year history of the nation. The legislation for American Indian Awareness Week was authored and promoted by J.C. Elliott-High Eagle, an Osage/Cherokee Indian from Oklahoma who met with the president on the day of the signing. It was signed by then President Gerald R. Ford.

And even before then, there were appeals for an American Indian Day in as early as 1915.

The Law Library of Congress has compiled guides to commemorative observations, including a comprehensive inventory of the Public Laws, Presidential Proclamations and congressional resolutions related to Native American Heritage Month.

Image courtesy of Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis.

Valencia Campuses on Native American Land

According to Native Land Digital, Valencia campuses sit on land stolen from the Seminole and Timucua tribes.

Native Land Digital strives to create and foster conversations about the history of colonialism, Indigenous ways of knowing, and settler-Indigenous relations, through educational resources such as their map and Territory Acknowledgement Guide. Land is something sacred to all of us, whether we consciously appreciate it or not — it is the space upon which we play, live, eat, find love, and experience life. Native Land Digital is mapping more than just a flat picture. The land itself is sacred, and it is not easy to draw lines that divide it up into chunks that delineate who “owns” different parts of land. In reality, land is not something to be exploited and “owned”, but something to be honored and treasured. Native land should be acknowledged.

According the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture's #HonorNativeLand, "Acknowledgment is a simple, powerful way of showing respect and a step toward correcting the stories and practices that erase Indigenous people’s history and culture and toward inviting and honoring the truth. Imagine this practice widely adopted: imagine cultural venues, classrooms, conference settings, places of worship, sports stadiums, and town halls, acknowledging traditional lands. Millions would be exposed—many for the first time—to the names of the traditional Indigenous inhabitants of the lands they are on, inspiring them to ongoing awareness and action."

Books