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Article: American Indians and Alaska Natives
- Article from:
- Encyclopedia of Public Health
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AMERICAN INDIANS AND ALASKA NATIVES
The term "American Indian and Alaska Native" (AI/AN) is used to refer to indigenous peoples of the United States. It is encompassed by the broader term "Native American," which also includes indigenous peoples of Canada (known as Aboriginal Canadians, Native Canadians, or First Nations), Mexico, and Central and South America. "Alaska Native" is used to refer jointly to Eskimos (Inuit), Indians, and Aleuts living in that state. (The Inuit are also native to Canada.) "Native American" is widely accepted as the "correct" term for the indigenous peoples that were residing in North America when Europeans first arrived on the continent, and for their ...