The Name

• The name "Indian" is an incorrect term of description. The term stems from the discovery of tribes in North America by Columbus, who thought he had reached the Indies. Although he was incorrect in establishing his location, the name stuck and "Indians" from the North American continent were born. To eliminate confusion, the term "Native American" was designated during the 1960s.
  
  

Indian Citizenship Act

• Although Indians lived in U.S. territory long before the Europeans arrived, they weren't granted equal rights until early in the 20th century. The Indian Citizenship Act corrected this oversight on June 2, 1924. This act declared that Native Americans born within the United States were citizens, but it allowed states to determine voting rights for Indians, resulting in some states not allowing Indians to vote until 1957.
  
  

Current Population

• The Indian population still numbers in the millions. The 2004 census stated that 4.4 million Indians live within the United States. Although the numbers are in the millions --- making up 1.5 pecent of the population --- the number of native language speakers is below 400,000.
  
  

Disease

• Isolated populations become more at-risk to the harm that diseases can cause. Because of their isolation over thousands of years, Indians had a limited exposure to foreign-borne illnesses. After Europeans landed in North America, an estimated 95 percent of the Native American population died within 150 years because of diseases such as measles and smallpox.
  
  

Games

• Many things originating from Indian culture have been integrated into U.S. culture. This includes words such as pecan, chipmunk, and squash. Additionally, some games have origins in Native American culture, including lacrosse, which the Cherokees used for military training, and canoeing.