Education about and for the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas

Indigenous Institute of the Americas

PO Box 14612

Albuquerque, New Mexico 87111

The Indigenous Institute of the Americas (IIA) INSTITUTO INDIGENA de las AMERICAS

is a private non-profit organization.

PURPOSE

TO PROMOTE AND SHARE THE SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES COMPRISING THE TRADITIONAL CULTURES OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLE OF THE AMERICAS BY RESEARCHING, COLLECTING, ARCHIVING, AND DISSEMINATING OUR HISTORY PRIOR TO AND SINCE 1492.

MISSION

TO PRESERVE, PROMOTE AND PROTECT THE INTERESTS OF

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE OF THE AMERICAS.

VISION

A WORLD THAT UNDERSTANDS, VALUES, RESPECTS AND CELEBRATES INDIGENOUS

CULTURES OF THE AMERICAS.

FIRST DEFINITION OF INDIGENOUS

IN 1492 WHEN COLUMBUS WAS LOST AND LANDED AMONG THE TAINO PEOPLE ON THE COASTAL ISLANDS OF THE AMERICAS, INDIA WAS NOT A COUNTRY, IT WAS KNOWN AS HINDUSTAN.

IN HIS JOURNALS COLUMBUS MADE REFERENCE TO HOW HE AND HIS MEN WERE TREATED BY THE NATIVES WAS CHRISTIAN OR GOD LIKE. SO HE REFERRED TO THEM

AS "EN DIOS" "IN GOD" AND IT BECAME "IN DIOS".

SO THE WORDING REFERS TO INDIGENOUS PEOPLE AS INDIOS

AND IN ENGLISH IT BECAME INDIAN.