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About Native American Peoples
Entry from Encyclopedia of American Cultural and Intellectual History
Native American people and tribal groups have participated in virtually every aspect of the social and intellectual life of the Americas for longer than any other group, but that participation has all too often been understood only in military terms or, worse, ignored. Current work in historical, literary, and cultural studies allows a deeper appreciation for the nuanced ways in which American indigenes have provided some of the foundations for North American intellectual and social life and have responded to the settlement of their lands by successive waves of immigrants, first from Europe, then from every corner of the globe. At times throughout history, especially in the first two centuries of colonization in the Americas, American Indians have been the central focus of hemispheric life as adversaries and impediments rather than as partners in the creation of a new set of cultural and social conditions on the continent. In the twentieth century, American Indians made important contributions to contemporary social and intellectual life as public figures, authors, musicians, artists, and politicians. Perhaps the most neglected aspect of life for Native Americans has been the largely overlooked but still vital work of ensuring a future for indigenous cultural life in the centuries since the arrival of Europeans on American soil. Each of these areas is important in developing an understanding of how indigenous peoples have responded as historical agents to the changes that have taken place under modernity.
Photo: Navajo man in ceremonial dress representing the Yebichai god Zahabolzi (Zahadolzha?). 1904. Edward S. Curtis, photographer.
Welcome to the Native American & Indigenous Studies Research Guide! This guide has information and quick access to resources to help you with coursework, research, and professional development. Use the tabs on the left to navigate to relevant sub topics. To find general information about how to use the library, please visit our Using the Library Tutorial Link.
Faces of the Welcome Banner
When updating this research guide, Rebecca Crown librarians decided to highlight real Native and Indigenous Americans in the research guide banner at the top of this screen. Below are the original photos used to create the banner, along with short biographies and links to learn more about each individual.
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Katie John (1915-2013), Alaskan native, advocate and cultural expert, is most famous for fighting to reclaim fishing territory for her people. She won the court case, known as the Katie John case throughout Alaska, after it was sent to the Supreme Court in 1992. She is also credited for teaching Native skills, tools, resources, and the Ahtna language to the next generation. Learn more about John here. |
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Zahn McClarnon (1966-) is a revered Native American actor, with Hunkpapa Lakota ancestry. Known for his most popular roles, he has acted in more than 23 movies and has appeared in more than 35 TV shows. His most iconic roles include Akecheta in Westworld, Officer Big in Reservation Dogs, and Hanzee Dent in the second season of Fargo. Read more about him in an interview with Santa Fe Magazine, found here. |
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Zitkala-Ša (Red Bird / Gertrude Simmons Bonnin) (1876-1928) was born a member of the Yankton Dakota Sioux. Throughout her life, Zitkala-Ša was in and out of Indian boarding and residential schools: by force as a student and by choice as a music teacher. She was outwardly critical of the boarding school system and fought for the preservation of Indigenous knowledge until her death. Learn more about her life and work here. |
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Bertha Parker (1907-1978) is known for her astounding archeology find of an "intact skull of a long-extinct giant ground sloth, sitting near man-made artifacts" in 1930. Her findings proved people were in the Americas over 10,000 years ago. Known as the first Indigenous archeologist, Parker never received formal training prior to her massive discovery. Learn more about Parker here. |
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Madison Hammond (1997-) is the first ever Native American to play in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). Raised by her Navajo and San Felipe Pueblo mother, Hammond moved from the San Felipe Pueblo to the Washington D.C. area when she was nine. This is where she joined her first soccer league. In 2022, Hammond was traded to the Angel City Football Club and scored her first goal in the NWSL the following season. View her Angel City roster entry here. |
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Joy Harjo (1951-) served as the 23rd United States Poet Laureate and was the first Native American to hold the position. Harjo was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma and is a member of the Mvskoke Nation. Recently awarded a National Humanities Medal, she has published poetry, plays, memoirs, and nonfiction works. Learn more about her remarkable work on her website. |
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John Fire Lame Deer (1903-1976) was born near the Rose Bud reservation to a Hunkpapa Lakota father and Miniconjou Lakota mother. After a turbulent childhood in a residential school and the death of his mother, at age 17, Lame Deer joined the rodeo as rider than as a clown. He was also a heyoka, or sacred clown, within his tribe, someone visited by Thunder-Beings in dreams, known for their contrary and often comedic behaviors. Learn more about Lame Deer's life here. |
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Redbone is an rock band, based in Los Angeles, California around 1969-1977. At the height of their commercial success, the band was made entirely of men with Native and Mexican ancestry. As in many bands, the members fluctuated throughout the years, but the ones pictured here are Tony Bellamy (Yaqui/Mexican), brothers Candido "Lolly" Vegas and Pat Vegas (Yaqui/Shoshone/Mexican), and Pete DePoe (Cheyanne/Chippawea/Siletz). Listen to their music on the Redbone website. |
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Edmonia Lewis (1844-1907) was an internationally-recognized sculptor whose artwork often reflected her two cultures (Black and Chippawea Native American). After attending Oberlin College in Ohio, Lewis traveled to Boston, then Rome in pursuit of becoming a professional, fine artist. In Rome, she joined a group of women artists and began working in marble, carving all of her own stonework. Visit this Smithsonian site to view her work and learn more about her. |
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Pictured on the right, Louise Erdich (1954-) is a Native American author, known and revered for many books including The Round House, which won a National Book Award for Fiction in 2012. Much of her writing focuses on the lived experiences of Indigenous peoples throughout the 20th century. She also has poetry and nonfiction collections published. Learn more about Erdich here. |
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Autumn Peltier (2004-) is an activist and has been the chief water commissioner of the Anishinabek Nation since 2019. A water advocate and activist since she was 8 years old, Peltier has spoken to audiences at the Assembly of First Nations (2016) and the UN General Assembly (2018). Follow this link to read an interview from when she was 12 in which she outlines her purpose. |
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Jesse Cornplanter (1889-1957) was the last male descendant of Cornplanter, an important 18th-century Haudenosaunee (Seneca) leader and war chief. Jesse Cornplanter had many titles: author, actor, activist, and World War I veteran. In this photo, he is handcrafting a ceremonial mask. See more photographs and learn about his work with contemporary anthropologists here. |
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Fred Begay (1932-2013) was a was a Navajo and Ute nuclear physicist and in 1971, became the first member of the Navajo clan to receive a PhD in physics. After his time in a residential school, he fought in the Korean war. From there, he began his physics journey. For more than 30 years, he worked at the Los Alamos National Lab in New Mexico. Learn more about his life here. |
