Legal Descriptions (Legal Information for Indigenous People: National Edition)

When compiling legal information we are hoping is relevant to Indigenous people and advocates across "Canada," there can be conflicting or confusing identifiers for people or groups.
We share here the "Notes on Terminology" from Bringing Balance to the Scales of Justice: Fulfilling Our Responsibility to Indigenous People Involved in the Justice System, prepared by MCPEI’s Indigenous Justice Program in partnership with Justice Canada’s Indigenous Justice Program.
The preferred terminology when referring to Canada’s Indigenous peoples can be confusing and is constantly evolving. This is intended as a quick glossary to some of the common terms.

Aboriginal Peoples: refers to the original peoples of Canada. It is the term that is recognized in the Canadian Constitution. Section 35(2) of the Canadian Constitution Act recognizes three groups of Aboriginal people — Indians, Métis and Inuit. These are three separate peoples with unique heritages, languages, cultural practices and spiritual beliefs. First Nations: refers to the Indian peoples of Canada, both Status and Non- Status. Although it has no legal definition, it can be preferable in some situations to using the legal term "Indian" as it is considered offensive. Indian: describes Aboriginal people who are not Inuit or Métis. The term "Indian" is considered offensive by many, and often the term "First Nation" is preferable except when it is necessary to make precise legal distinctions, for example when referring to how a person is defined under the Indian Act.

There are three types of Indians in Canada.

Status Indians are First Nations people whose names are included on the Indian Registry—a list maintained by the federal government. Status Indians are recognized under the Indian Act and are entitled to specific rights and benefits.

Non-Status Indians are people who are members of a First Nation community but are not recognized as Indians under the Indian Act. Many First Nations people lost their status rights through past discriminatory practices.

Treaty Indian is a Status Indian who belongs to a First Nation that signed a treaty with the Crown.

Indigenous: is often used interchangeably with Aboriginal and is used to refer to First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples. It is the term most commonly used in the International context and by the United Nations in, for example, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The term "Indigenous" is replacing "Aboriginal" in many contexts. It should be noted however, that the term does not have a specific legal definition in Canada, while the term "Aboriginal" does.

Inuit: describes the Indigenous peoples of Arctic Canada. Inuit are not covered in the Indian Act, but the Supreme Court has interpreted the federal government’s power to make laws affecting "Indians, and Lands reserved for the Indians" to include the Inuit. Inuit never lived on reserves, therefore the terms "on-reserve" and "off-reserve" do not apply. It should be noted that "Inuit" means "the people" in Inuktitut, so one should avoid using the term "Inuit people" as "people" is redundant.

Métis: describes people with mixed First Nations and European ancestry who choose to identify themselves as Métis. Many Canadians have mixed Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal ancestry, but do not identify as Métis. It should be noted that Métis organizations have differing criteria about who qualifies as a Métis person.

Native: is similar in meaning to "Aboriginal" and "Indigenous" and can refer to First Nation, Inuit and Métis peoples. In the United States, the term "Native American" is commonly used to describe Aboriginal people, but in Canada the terms "Aboriginal" or "Indigenous" may be preferable to "Native."

Reserve (on-reserve/off-reserve): A reserve is land, legally owned by the Crown, set aside for the use and benefit of an Indian Band. On-reserve refers to a First Nations person who lives in the Band community, and off-reserve refers to a First Nations person who does not live within a Band community. They should not to be confused with the terms "Status" or "Non-Status."

Edited by Joanne MacKinnon "Note On Terminology," p3 and 4: https://mcpei.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Bringing-Balanceto-the-Scales-of-Justice-Resource-Guide.pdf

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