Métis

In Canada, the Métis, as defined by the Constitution Act 1982, are Aboriginal people. They are descendants of specific mixed First Nations and European ancestry who self-identify as Métis, and are accepted into their current community. The Métis people are the modern descendants of Indigenous women in Canada and the colonial-era French, Scottish and English trappers and fur traders they married.

The descendants of these unions formed communities, first around hunting, trapping and fur trading, that to this day have a unique and specific culture. The term "Métis" does not mean any white person who believes they also have some Native ancestry. It refers to specific, intact communities of Aboriginal people and their culture. The majority of Métis people have combined Algonquian and French ancestry.

Etymology

The word "Métis" (from Old French mestis, from Late Latin mixtīcius) was first used to refer to people of mixed race born generally to indigenous women and French men in New France and La Louisiane. Over time in Canada, many mixed-race people married within their own group, maintaining contact with their indigenous culture. The term developed in association with these particular communities of mixed-race people and their unique culture.