Did you know?

[Matthew3590]

Did you know that camels are native to North America? Crossed the bearing land bridge into Asia around 50,000BC. Their closest relative is the llama.

Did you know the word INDIAN is Latin for indigenous?

Did you know that the word AMERICA is Italian?

(Don't know if this one is true) But if you call an eskimo an eskimo, they consider it a derogatory word? I have never talked to one though.

Just some things I learned in US history today.

 

[magicpigeon]

Australian history is so much more boring. The only thing I've ever gotten out of that is that
1. there was a white australia policy
2. some cruel parents ACTUALLY called their son, "Isaac Isaacs"
3. Federation occured in 1901. Boring, right?

 

[aggie9296]

I believe the preferred term for Native Alaskans (and Native Canadians) is Inuit?

 

[chickened]

The term Indian pertaining to Native Americans was given to them by Columbus because he thought he landed in India.

 

[Matthew3590]

Quote:
I was told he didn't believe he was in India but was in the Indonesian islands.

 

[mom'sfolly]

Also Indian and indigenous have different word roots. Indian is from the word for India, which has always referred to the Indian subcontinent, and indigenous has roots in to Latin words, one of which is the same as the root for gene or gender, meaning the beginning of something.

The camel bit is true.

American is named for an Italian, Amerigo Vespucci. He was the first one to use the term "New World".

Eskimo sort of depends on who you ask. Canada and Greenland don't use the term, Alaskans still do.

Teachers aren't always right nor are textbooks.

Oops, just realized that I'm a total buzzkill.....sorry

 

[chickened]

mom'sfolly :

Teachers aren't always right nor are textbooks.

You got that one right

 

[PotterWatch]

Quote:
The Inuit people are just one of the different tribes of Eskimo. Other cultures besides Eskimo are Athabascan, Tlingit, Haida, and several others I can't remember right now. Those main groups break down into tribes.

So an Inuit is an Eskimo and probably wouldn't care about being called such but an Athabascan or Tlingit wouldn't want to be called an Eskimo because they aren't one.

 

[mom'sfolly]

Native, rather than Indian, would be an acceptable generic term for the indigenous people of the US, including Alaska and Hawaii. The Canadians generally use the term First People.

And yes, there are Native Alaskans whose cultures do not fit into the Eskimo culture or language group. I think the Aleut are the same language group as the Yupik and Inupiat (Eskimos).

 

[I have WHAT in my yard?]

The other problem with teaching history as well as world cultures is that both are very complicated and full of ethnocentric assumptions. They still need to be taught at the most basic level first.....

When you teach kids about the founding fathers you don't start in on the complications of their slave ownership in 2nd grade.....