Native American studies

Native American studies
Name	Native American studies
Focus	Indigenous peoples of North America
Disciplines	Ethnohistory; Anthropology; Sociology; Political Science
Notable institutions	University of California, Berkeley; Harvard University; University of Arizona; University of New Mexico; Tribal College and University (United States)
Notable scholars	Vine Deloria Jr.; Paula Gunn Allen; Wilma Mankiller; Ward Churchill; Joy Harjo

Contents

Native American studies is an interdisciplinary field that examines the histories, cultures, politics, laws, arts, languages, and contemporary experiences of Indigenous peoples of North America. It draws on scholarship and activism involving tribes such as the Navajo Nation, Cherokee Nation, Sioux (including the Oglala Sioux Tribe), Lakota people, Omaha Tribe of Nebraska and Iowa, Chippewa (Ojibwe), Anishinaabe, Comanche Nation, Iroquois Confederacy (Haudenosaunee), Hopi Tribe, Zuni Pueblo, Pueblo of Acoma, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, Chickasaw Nation, Creek (Muscogee) Nation, Seminole Tribe of Florida, and urban communities such as Native Americans in Phoenix, Arizona and Native Americans in Los Angeles. The field engages with legal documents like the Treaty of Fort Laramie and the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act, events such as the Wounded Knee Occupation (1973), and institutions including the National Congress of American Indians and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Definitions and scope

Native American studies encompasses scholarship on particular peoples—Tlingit, Haida, Aleut, Yup'ik, Métis, Inuit—and regions such as the Pacific Northwest, Great Plains, Northeastern Woodlands, Southeastern Woodlands, Southwest United States, and Alaska Native contexts. It addresses legal frameworks including the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924, Indian Removal Act, Indian Reorganization Act, and cases like Worcester v. Georgia and Johnson v. M'Intosh. The scope includes interaction with colonial powers—British Empire, Spanish Empire, France in North America—and later national authorities such as the United States and Canada via instruments like the Royal Proclamation of 1763 and the Royal Proclamation (1763)'s legacies.

Origins tie to activism by figures and movements such as Russell Means, Dennis Banks and the American Indian Movement and to scholarly antecedents in institutions like Columbia University and Stanford University. Key publications and authors include Vine Deloria Jr.'s works, Paula Gunn Allen's essays, and poetry by Joy Harjo; legal scholarship engages with cases such as Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe and statutes like the Indian Child Welfare Act. Conferences at Smithsonian Institution and programs at University of California, Los Angeles and University of Washington helped professionalize the field, while federal policy shifts under administrations such as Franklin D. Roosevelt and Richard Nixon shaped institutional trajectories.

Methodologies draw from ethnohistory practiced with archives like the National Archives and Records Administration, oral history projects involving elders from Navajo Nation and Pueblo of Zuni, linguistics focusing on Siouan languages, Algonquian languages, and Athabaskan languages, and participatory action research with tribes and organizations such as the Association on American Indian Affairs. Theoretical lenses include decolonization debates influenced by scholars citing Frantz Fanon (not a Native American but influential), comparative frameworks referencing Postcolonialism, and legal pluralism studies engaging with United States v. Kagama and tribal constitutions like the Navajo Nation Council's governing documents.

Regional scholarship treats cases like the Trail of Tears and Cherokee Nation (1794–1907) history, Pueblo revolts such as the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, Plains histories including the Battle of Little Bighorn, and Alaska Native experiences following the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. Tribal-focused work covers governance in the Seminole Tribe of Florida, language revitalization among the Hopi and Mohawk communities, cultural revitalization in the Blackfeet Nation, and intertribal diplomacy via entities like the National Congress of American Indians and the Inter-Tribal Council of Arizona.

Academic programs exist at institutions such as University of Arizona's School of Tucson programs, University of New Mexico's Center for Southwest Research, Harvard University Native American Program, and tribal colleges including Salish Kootenai College, Sinte Gleska University, Haskell Indian Nations University, and Diné College (formerly Navajo Community College). Curriculum development engages with federal acts such as the Elementary and Secondary Education Act in contexts of culturally relevant pedagogy, community-based curricula developed with tribal education offices and organizations like the American Indian College Fund.

Central issues include tribal sovereignty debates addressed through cases like McGirt v. Oklahoma, jurisdictional disputes exemplified by Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe, land claims such as Cobell v. Salazar, resource disputes involving Keystone XL pipeline protests and energy projects, and treaty rights defended by tribes like the Yurok Tribe and Tulalip Tribes of Washington. Advocacy organizations include the National Congress of American Indians, Native American Rights Fund, and movements such as Idle No More; leaders and politicians include Wilma Mankiller, Ben Nighthorse Campbell, and activists tied to events like the Occupation of Alcatraz.

Artistic traditions range from Pueblo pottery by artisans of Acoma Pueblo and Taos Pueblo to Plains beadwork and contemporary visual art shown at institutions like the National Museum of the American Indian and galleries at Smithsonian Institution. Literary and performance contributions include poets and writers such as Joy Harjo, Leslie Marmon Silko, Sherman Alexie, N. Scott Momaday, and musicians connected to cultural resurgence. Knowledge systems include ecological practices such as traditional burning by the Karuk Tribe and seed stewardship documented by the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. Cultural preservation efforts work with museums like the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture and laws including the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.

Category:Indigenous studies