Indigenous peoples of the Americas

In the <a href="/facts/Americas/hEuUTL4K">Americas</a>, <a href="/facts/Indigenous_peoples/zyzBMXBS">Indigenous peoples</a> comprise the two continents' pre-Columbian inhabitants, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with them in the 15th century, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with the <a href="/facts/Pre-Columbian_population/gu8xwHyC">pre-Columbian population</a> of the Americas as such. These populations exhibit significant diversity; some indigenous peoples were historically <a href="/facts/Hunter-gatherers/ghnjoNbJ">hunter-gatherers</a>, while others practiced <a href="/facts/Agriculture/TGztqzJs">agriculture</a> and <a href="/facts/Aquaculture/MYdIMfbt">aquaculture</a>. Various Indigenous societies developed complex <a href="/facts/Social_structure/MyCzKt4H">social structures</a>, including pre-contact monumental architecture, organized <a href="/facts/City/2uNRFqAN">cities</a>, <a href="/facts/City-state/aj1EjbYy">city-states</a>, <a href="/facts/Chiefdoms/IocmAxWb">chiefdoms</a>, <a href="/facts/State_(polity)/7ggBzTSk">states</a>, <a href="/facts/Monarchy/Kg1vY7tt">kingdoms</a>, <a href="/facts/Republic/vc8D2pA8">republics</a>, <a href="/facts/Confederation/5MPbBSCS">confederacies</a>, and <a href="/facts/Empire/dsjWjBBd">empires</a>. These societies possessed varying levels of knowledge in fields such as <a href="/facts/Pre-Columbian_engineering_in_the_Americas/eLtFhRW4">engineering</a>, <a href="/facts/Pre-Columbian_architecture/LBcx4XQ9">architecture</a>, <a href="/facts/Mathematics/pxTouaz4">mathematics</a>, <a href="/facts/Astronomy/0ArJVM1p">astronomy</a>, <a href="/facts/History_of_writing/AX0eC1vr">writing</a>, <a href="/facts/Physics/a7aH2y08">physics</a>, <a href="/facts/Medicine/2fnp90Je">medicine</a>, <a href="/facts/Pre-Columbian_agriculture/0Ntjleee">agriculture</a>, <a href="/facts/Irrigation/RWX5PEgK">irrigation</a>, <a href="/facts/Geology/WGvVRIYF">geology</a>, <a href="/facts/Mining/g6uDIFab">mining</a>, <a href="/facts/Metallurgy/1SANyxX4">metallurgy</a>, <a href="/facts/Pre-Columbian_art/A364J4kn">art</a>, <a href="/facts/Indigenous_American_sculpture/F01q8gtb">sculpture</a>, and <a href="/facts/Goldsmithing/L1xlgt2o">goldsmithing</a>.
Indigenous peoples continue to inhabit many regions of the Americas, with significant populations in <a href="/facts/Indigenous_peoples_in_Bolivia/elVnCfJk">Bolivia</a>, <a href="/facts/Indigenous_peoples_in_Canada/27LEvndw">Canada</a>, <a href="/facts/Indigenous_peoples_in_Chile/zkuvrCA6">Chile</a>, <a href="/facts/Indigenous_peoples_in_Colombia/UQNX7RnM">Colombia</a>, <a href="/facts/Indigenous_peoples_in_Ecuador/YS5SaYDy">Ecuador</a>, Guatemala, <a href="/facts/Indigenous_peoples_of_Mexico/ChgUdWdQ">Mexico</a>, <a href="/facts/Indigenous_peoples_of_Peru/VsedsNCr">Peru</a>, and the <a href="/facts/Native_Americans_in_the_United_States/lr8Qmd6N">United States</a>. There are at least 1,000 different <a href="/facts/Indigenous_languages_of_the_Americas/phwWNwhJ">indigenous languages</a> spoken across the Americas, with 574 federally recognized tribes in the United States alone. Some languages, including <a href="/facts/Quechuan_languages/XuYYuTkJ">Quechua</a>, <a href="/facts/Arawak_language/sCmILBlg">Arawak</a>, <a href="/facts/Aymara_language/MGzXcISr">Aymara</a>, <a href="/facts/Guarani_language/Rlo1qQMz">Guaraní</a>, <a href="/facts/Nahuatl/MTVHtb8U">Nahuatl</a>, and <a href="/facts/Mayan_languages/5J0QpcLa"> some Mayan languages</a>, have millions of speakers and are recognized as official by governments in <a href="/facts/Bolivia/YNBoDKKR">Bolivia</a>, <a href="/facts/Peru/dBt7XrYD">Peru</a>, <a href="/facts/Paraguay/sbzfv4Rl">Paraguay</a>, and <a href="/facts/Greenland/aagXRTB7">Greenland</a>. Indigenous peoples, whether residing in rural or urban areas, often maintain aspects of their cultural practices, including <a href="/facts/Native_American_religions/ubw7jgFr">religion</a>, <a href="/facts/Social_organization/EDpvow0U">social organization</a>, and <a href="/facts/Subsistence_economy/1m7rXxKM">subsistence</a> practices. Over time, these cultures have evolved, preserving traditional customs while adapting to modern needs. Some Indigenous groups remain relatively isolated from <a href="/facts/Western_culture/rPbgAhzI">Western culture</a>, with some still classified as uncontacted peoples.
The Americas also host millions of individuals of mixed Indigenous, European, and sometimes African or Asian descent, historically referred to as <a href="/facts/Mestizo/SIsX4FAC">mestizos</a> in Spanish-speaking countries. In many <a href="/facts/Latin_America/Qmx9Jx2a">Latin American</a> nations, people of partial Indigenous descent constitute a majority or significant portion of the population, particularly in <a href="/facts/Central_America/CXKgTuxC">Central America</a>, <a href="/facts/Mexico/IT5bwhdh">Mexico</a>, Peru, Bolivia, <a href="/facts/Ecuador/Tdv7czY4">Ecuador</a>, <a href="/facts/Colombia/nl7r8Q2u">Colombia</a>, <a href="/facts/Venezuela/eX1qnkln">Venezuela</a>, <a href="/facts/Chile/uEyTfEcx">Chile</a>, and Paraguay. Mestizos outnumber Indigenous peoples in most Spanish-speaking countries, according to estimates of ethnic cultural identification. However, since Indigenous communities in the Americas are defined by <a href="/facts/Cultural_identification/YLUfbbIC">cultural identification</a> and <a href="/facts/Kinship/grXkJ2u7">kinship</a> rather than ancestry or <a href="/facts/Race_(human_categorization)/cDPnrdXn">race</a>, mestizos are typically not counted among the Indigenous population unless they speak an Indigenous language or identify with a specific Indigenous culture. Additionally, many individuals of wholly Indigenous descent who do not follow Indigenous traditions or speak an Indigenous language are often classified or self-identify as mestizo due to assimilation into the dominant <a href="/facts/Hispanic_culture/EY31pWn0">Hispanic culture</a>. In recent years, the self-identified Indigenous population in many countries has increased as individuals reclaim their heritage amid rising Indigenous-led movements for <a href="/facts/Self-determination/bk7dhtju">self-determination</a> and <a href="/facts/Social_justice/yPVcRR0w">social justice</a>.

Indigenous peoples of the Americas open-in-new

Indigenous peoples of the Americas