Understanding the Current Complexities of Indigenous Land Tenure and Toponymy: The Importance of Historical Indigenous Cartography and Contributions to Euro/American/Canadian Cartography

Keywords: Indigenous, historical maps, toponymy
Session Type: Virtual Paper Abstract
Day: Saturday
Session Start / End Time: 2/26/2022 02:00 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/26/2022 03:20 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 22

Abstract

In recent years, many libraries and archives have started digitizing their collections thus making maps by Indigenous peoples more easily available for scholars to study. While a number of these maps were discussed in the History of Cartography series (volume 2, book 3: 1998), more have since been found and disseminated. These maps are critical in understanding the historic and current land tenure of Indigenous groups. Further, Indigenous claims to land can be seen in their connections via toponymy. European concepts of territory and political boundaries did not coincide with First Nation/American Indian views resulting in the mistaken view that Natives did not have formal concepts of their territories. This presentation will illustrate how Native residents were very spatially cognizant of their own lands, as well as neighboring nations’ lands, overlaps between groups, populations, hunting territories, and trade networks. Currently, the Sinixt First Nation provides a perfect example of how an Aboriginal people are inputting and using a GIS representation of their territory in British Columbia and Washington state with proper toponymy and use areas.