Need help with Research Paper about Native Americans!!!?

Question

Ok, I have to write a research paper with the topic having to do with Native Americans. IT can be about a tribe, or a specific person. I have no clue what to choose, and it seems like there isn't a lot of web sources about Native Americans. I wanted to find stuff on Native Americans and the Portuguese but couldn't find anything. Please give me some advice. Thanks so much!!! P.S. Best Answer gets 10Points!

Answer 1

I got my graduate degree in public administration with a focus in indigenous and tribal governance; there are so many resources out there. You just need to know which ones to tap.

Read about current trends and issues in Indian Country by going to Indian Country News ... both a paper and online newspaper geared toward Native American issues. You can try searching by tribes, federally recognized or not. You can hit the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs to get a government feel. You can look at Indian casino websites; they are generally linked to the website of a tribe.

You can go to college websites that offer tribal governance (like mine) and there are usually links to use. I am associated with Northwest Indian Applied Research Institute, attended NCAI (National Conference of the American Indian), and helped to coordinate the planning meeting of the First International Indigenous Academic Leadership Forum. There are resources out there.

When using search terms on the web. Try Gaming, Natural Resource Management, Sovereignty, Blood Quantum, American Indian, Native Hawaiian. There are so many phrases you can use.

The term Native American is mostly found on job applications; look at the definitions there (it usually breaks down by region or group) to pull information from that.

If you want to find a link between Portuguese and Native Americans, go to Hawaii. The Portuguese are but one culture that make up a part of Hawaiian identity.

Anyhow, I wish you luck. Don't get bogged down in the label so much, and you will find great knowledge and something that will surely interest you.

Answer 2

You should see if your nearest library has a copy of the Handbook of North American Indians. It's described at this site:
http://www.mnh.si.edu/anthro/handbook.html

The Handbook is usually shelved with Government Publications in most libraries. If not there, then in the Reference section.

Also, reference books might be a good start. There are many encyclopedias of Native Americans that will give you easy-to-use
(i.e. not too in-depth) coverage of tribes, persons, topics, etc.)

Here are just a few suggestions. Look for these in your nearest library (using the online catalog)

Notable Native Americans, Sharon Malinowski, editor ; George H.J. Abrams, consulting editor & author of foreword. Gale Publications, 1995

American Indian Tribes, edited by the editors of Salem Press ; project editor, R. Kent Rasmussen. Salem Press, c2000.

A Native American encyclopedia : history, culture, and peoples
by Barry Pritzker, Oxford University Press, 2000.

Here are some other collections of links to Native American information resources:

http://www.americanwest.com/pages/indians.htm

http://www.nativeculturelinks.com/nations.html

http://www.hanksville.org/NAresources/indices/NAlanguage.html

Answer 3

Google these topics and you will understand why I chose them.

Chief Joseph - Nez Perce
Chief Joseph Brant - Mohawk
Massasoit - Wampanoag
Cherokee - Trail of Tears
Iroqouis Confederacy

Answer 4

I did one q4 on Land Allotments. Its said as the Dawes Act. It develop into even as the authorities idea it could be extra perfect to furnish each and every complete-blood Indian an allotment of land to prosper fairly of permitting them to stay as an section as their custom and way of existence if use to. even with the indisputable fact that the state illegally taxed the allotments and the land develop into taken away. This left a checkerboard results of land owned through Indians and through those who offered the illegally ceased land. specially my paper develop into on the Chippewa in the north mid west. I were given an A and discovered very most of the injustices performed to the Indians through our authorities.

Answer 5

Try these sites. They might help you get started.

http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_701509044_20/Native_Americans_of_Middle_and_South_America.html

http://www.nativeamericans.com/NativeAmericanLanguages.htm