Research Guides: Native American and Indigenous Studies (NAIS): Home

Researching Native American and Indigenous Studies Topics

Welcome to the Native American and Indigenous Studies (NAIS) guide. This guide is intended to help you identify books, databases, primary sources, and other materials that might be useful in NAIS. It is not an exhaustive guide, but a starting place. Because NAIS is a multi-disciplinary academic field, its students and practitioners use sources, methods, theories drawn from many different places to approach a wide range of topics.

Finding the most useful search terms to research your project is always important. Searching for NAIS topics can be even more complicated than usual, because of the variation in naming over time and between authors. Depending on your topic, you may have to use various combinations of:

native american
american indian
indigenous peoples
first peoples
first nations
names of individual tribes, bands or nations relevant to your topic

Land Acknowledgment

VCU's two largest campuses are located on the traditional lands of the Powhatan Confederacy. I acknowledge the role of the Powhatan as the traditional custodians of these lands, and I pay respect to their elders past, present and emerging.

Awareness of the history of a land and its indigenous peoples involves more than making a blanket statement. If you have not already done so, consider learning more at Native Land, the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, or from resources offered by your local tribe, band or nation.

Try Something New

Selected new or recent resources from VCU Libraries collections.

Decolonizing Journalism: A Guide to Reporting in Indigenous Communities by Duncan McCue
Call Number: Cabell Library General Collection PN4914.I553 M33 2022
Publication Date: 2023
Recent events including the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the discovery of mass graves at the sites of former residential schools have brought increased coverage of Indigenous Peoples to Canada's mainstream media outlets. However, there is no guide for current and aspiring journalists to building respectful and reciprocal relationships with Indigenous people and communities when researching and sharing their stories. Written by a leading Indigenous journalist, Duncan McCue, specifically for journalism students in Canada, Decolonizing Journalism delivers practical, up-to-date advice in a guidebook-like text that students will use throughout their studies and careers.
Handbook of North American Indians, Volume 1: Introduction
Publication Date: 2022
The Handbook of North American Indians series—the most monumental summary of knowledge on indigenous peoples of the USA, Canada, and Northern Mexico—was designed by the staff of the National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) Department of Anthropology in the 1960s and, in 2022, culminates with Volume 1, edited by Igor Krupnik. Involving more than 70 contributors from the United States, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and Germany, including indigenous contributors from across North America, with 35 chapters and more than 7,400 bibliography entries, Volume 1 presents new perspectives on the history of North America’s indigenous societies, issues facing North American indigenous communities in the 21st century, a thorough update of the studies of Native American indigenous peoples, and the first-ever history of the Handbook project.
Handbook of Research on Teachers of Color and Indigenous Teachers by Conra D. Gist; Travis J. Bristol (Editor)
Publication Date: 2024
Teachers of Color and Indigenous Teachers are underrepresented in public schools across the United States of America, with Black, Indigenous, and People of Color making up roughly 37% of the adult population and 50% of children, but just 19% of the teaching force. Yet research over decades has indicated their positive impact on student learning and social and emotional development, particularly for Students of Color and Indigenous Students. A first of its kind, the Handbook of Research on Teachers of Color and Indigenous Teachers addresses key issues and obstacles to ethnoracial diversity across the life course of teachers' careers, such as recruitment and retention, professional development, and the role of minority-serving institutions. Including chapters from leading researchers and policy makers, the Handbook is designed to be an important resource to help bridge the gap between scholars, practitioners, and policy makers.
The Routledge Handbook of Indigenous Film by Ernie Blackmore, Kerstin Knopf, Wendy Gay Pearson, Corina Wieser-Cox, Eds.
Publication Date: 2024
The Routledge Handbook of Indigenous Film is dedicated to bringing the work of Indigenous filmmakers around the world to a larger audience. By giving voice to transnational and transcultural Indigenous perspectives, this collection makes a significant contribution to the discourse on Indigenous filmmaking and provides an accessible overview of the contemporary state of Indigenous film. Within these sections Indigenous and non-Indigenous experts from around the world examine various aspects of Indigenous film cultures, analyze the works of Indigenous directors and producers worldwide, and focus on readings (contextual, historical, political, aesthetic, and activist) of individual Indigenous films.
The Routledge International Handbook of Indigenous Resilience by Hilary N. Weaver (Editor)
Publication Date: 2021
This handbook provides a comprehensive and cutting-edge strengths-based resource on the subject of Indigenous resilience. Indigenous Peoples demonstrate considerable resilience despite the social, health, economic, and political disparities they experience within surrounding settler societies. This book considers Indigenous resilience in many forms: cultural, spiritual, and governance traditions remain in some communities and are being revitalized in others to reclaim aspects of their cultures that have been outlawed, suppressed, or undermined. It explores how Indigenous people advocate for social justice and work to shape settler societies in ways that create a more just, fair, and equitable world for all human and non-human beings.

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Researching Native American and Indigenous Studies Topics

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