Native American Heritage Month: Articles & Databases

In an age of genetic medicine, ethnic groups are increasingly being labeled at risk for chronic diseases. Biomedical and genetics research studies have had a significant impact on Native Americans' perceptions of diabetes risk. Ethnographic interviews with 53 Native Americans were conducted in a tribal community that has participated extensively in studies of diabetes. Tribal members had varying reactions to research labeling them at risk genetically for diabetes, from fatalism to motivation for changing diet/exercise habits. Interviewees spontaneously discussed the 'thrifty genotype' hypothesis in diverse ways. Some felt Native Americans had 'weak genes' that made them 'poorly adapted' to modern society's diet, while others stated that Native Americans had 'survival genes' that historically helped them thrive in harsh environments. Interviewees used genetics as a metaphor for expressing vulnerability in the face of a challenging history that resulted in rapid changes to Native American lifestyles. Interestingly, some tribal members saw biomedical research as a tool to help them 'adapt' to the modern world. Collaborative research may provide tribes with unique opportunities to actively address the diabetes epidemic. Researchers' and healthcare providers' descriptions of diabetes risk have important implications for how community members perceive their ability to prevent or manage the disease.

The peopling of the Americas has been the subject of extensive genetic, archaeological and linguistic research; however, central questions remain unresolved. One contentious issue is whether the settlement occurred by means of a single migration or multiple streams of migration from Siberia. The pattern of dispersals within the Americas is also poorly understood. To address these questions at a higher resolution than was previously possible, we assembled data from 52 Native American and 17 Siberian groups genotyped at 364,470 single nucleotide polymorphisms. Here we show that Native Americans descend from at least three streams of Asian gene flow. Most descend entirely from a single ancestral population that we call 'First American'. However, speakers of Eskimo-Aleut languages from the Arctic inherit almost half their ancestry from a second stream of Asian gene flow, and the Na-Dene-speaking Chipewyan from Canada inherit roughly one-tenth of their ancestry from a third stream. We show that the initial peopling followed a southward expansion facilitated by the coast, with sequential population splits and little gene flow after divergence, especially in South America. A major exception is in Chibchan speakers on both sides of the Panama isthmus, who have ancestry from both North and South America.

Discover the fascinating ways in which the U.S. was profoundly affected by the native cultures that were here thousands of years before the Europeans. Explore the ways in which our government, economy, agriculture, medicine, language & legal system are still influenced by Native American contributions. Explore your first impressions of the world 'Indian.' Discover Native American contributions to medicine, agriculture & the environment.

A collection of films honoring culture & history.

Trail of Tears exposes one of the darkest chapters in American history: the forced removal of the Cherokee Indians from the southeastern United States to a new home in the West, and the Cherokee people's determined struggle to maintain their cultural identity.

KUED takes a moving and insightful look into the history, operation, and legacy of the federal Indian Boarding School system, whose goal was total assimilation of Native Americans at the cost of stripping away Native culture, tradition, and language.