In U.S. law the term "Indians" refers generally to the indigenous peoples of the North American continent at the time of European colonization. "Alaska Natives" and "Native Hawaiians" refer to peoples who are...
native americans
American Indian law
American Indian Law: An Overview
colonialism
The word colony comes from the Latin word colonus, which means farmer - indicating the transfer of people to land. Colonialism is the act of power and domination of one nation, by acquiring or maintaining full or partial political control...
Department of the Interior (DOI)
The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) is a United States federal executive agency responsible for safeguarding and managing the nation's natural resources and cultural heritage; disseminating scientific and other information about those...
doctrine of discovery
The doctrine of discovery refers to a principle in public international law under which, when a nation “discovers” land, it directly acquires rights on that land. This doctrine arose when the European nations discovered non-European lands,...
Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA)
The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) is a federal law enacted in 1978 that seeks to keep Native American/indigenous children with Native American/indigenous families. The ICWA was passed after a crisis arose underlining that most Native...
indigenous
Indigenous (from Latin indigena which means “native to the country”) refers to the earliest known people of a region or country. It is often used to describe the remaining population of a place that was colonized by a now-dominant group....
terra nullius
Terra nullius is a term that refers to a “territory without a master.” It is a term used in public international law to describe a space that can be inhabited but that does not belong to a state, meaning the land is not owned by anyone. In...