Exploring a Topic - AIS 101 - Introduction to American Indian Studies - LibGuides at California State University, Northridge

Getting Started on Your Research

As you conduct research for different assignments in this AIS101 course, you will need to locate information about your potential topics by using search terms defined by predetermined subject headings (LCSH LIbrary of Congress Subject Headings) or keywords. When you are searching for information for topics for your Topics in American Indians Assignment you may need to look for information by using the following search strategies and vocabulary:

Search for Native American, Amerindian, Indian, First Peoples or indigenous as keywords
Search by the name of a particular tribe or cultural group (e.g., Cherokee or Apache)
Combine a tribal name with a topical word (e.g., Chumash mythology)
Identify the subject Indians of North America within One Search results.

Before you start your search, try to compile a list of potential keywords that best describe your topic. This is always a good idea, but it is especially useful for conducting searches in a new and interdisciplinary field, such as American Indian Studies. A good first place to start is to identify possible culture group names for your search.

Finding Statistics

Data Planet
A statistical data repository contains more than 35 billion data points from 70+ source organizations. Census results, business data, health metrics, political science data and more are included in over 4.9 billion datasets presented in charts, maps, graphs, and table form, via multiple points of entry.
Data.Census.Gov
Presents population, housing, economic, and geographic data from the United States Census Bureau. Data sets section offers tables for the Decennial Census, American Community Survey, Economic Census, and Population Estimates. (Formerly known as American Factfinder)

Bureau of Justice Statistics - Indian Country Justice Statistics
Statistics compiled on a variety of topics, including victimization, law enforcement, courts, and corrections.
Social and Economic Change on American Indian Reservations: A Databook of the US Censuses and the American Community Survey 1990 – 2010
"This study compiles 1990 and 2010 U.S. Census data on Native Americans residing on reservations and in designated Indian statistical areas in the lower 48 U.S. States."
U.S. Department of Commerce Economics and Statistics Administration U.S. CENSUS BUREAU The American Indian and Alaska Native Population: 2010
This report provides a portrait of the American Indian and Alaska Native population in the United States and discusses that population’s distribution at the national level and at lower levels of geography.
It is part of a series that analyzes population and housing data collected from the 2010 Census.

Choosing a Research Topic

Organizations and Additional Resources

National Congress of American Indians

Native American Rights Fund

Tribal Law and Policy Institute

Walking on Common Ground

Resources for promoting and faciliting tribal-state-federal collaborations.