Aboriginal Peoples of Canada 101
This guide will provide you with a starting point for research in your subject area.
Step 1: Define Your Topic
To help you in this process, use specialized encyclopedias and handbooks located in the reference collection, or chapters from a current textbook to give you a short overview of your research subject. The articles in these sources are written by experts on the topic and they often include references to other useful sources at the end of the article. You can be assured that the references listed there are authoritative sources and well worth consulting for your paper. Remember to watch for and note important keywords and synonyms relating to your topic. Some reference books that may be useful include:
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Ref FC 23 .C36
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Canadian Encyclopedia
|
|
Ref FC 3804 .E52
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Encyclopedia of British Columbia
|
| Ref E 54.5 .K46 |
Encyclopedia of American Indian contributions to the world |
| Ref E 76.2 .E53 |
Encyclopedia of North American Indians |
| Ref E 76.2 .G74 |
Encyclopedia of the First Peoples of North America |
| Ref E 76.2 .N36 |
Native America in the Twentieth Century |
| Ref E 76.2 .W36 |
Word dance: the language of North American culture |
| Ref E 77 .G15 |
Gale Encyclopedia of Native American Tribes |
| Ref E 77 .H25 |
Handbook of North American Indians |
| Ref E 77 .P89 |
Native Americans: an Encyclopedia of History, Cultures and Peoples |
| Ref E 77 .W195 |
Atlas of the North American Indian |
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Ref E 77.9 .A72
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Archaeology of Prehistoric Native America: an Encyclopedia
|
| Ref E 78 .B9 A26 |
Aboriginal People of British Columbia: a profile |
| Ref E 78 .B9 H32 |
Handbook of Indians of British Columbia |
| Ref E 78 .C2 A263 |
Aboriginal peoples in Canada n 2006: Inuit, Metis, and First Nations, 2006 Census |
| Ref E 78 .N78 S446 |
Understanding Northwest Coast Art |
|
Ref E 98 .E2 E52
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Encyclopedia of Native American Economic History
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| Ref E 98 .P76 S73 |
Statistical Record of Native North Americans |
| E 98 .R3 G46 |
Dictionary of Native American Mythology |
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Ref G 1116 .S1 H582
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Encyclopedia of Canada's Peoples
|
| Ref HQ 1115 .R69 |
Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women |
| Ref PM 641 .C46 |
Central Carrier Bilingual Dictionary |
| Ref RA 407.5 .C3 C36 |
Health and aboriginal data from Statistics Canada |
|
Ref RA 418 .E354
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Encyclopedia of Medical Anthropology
|
Step 2: Look for Books
Begin your research by checking for your topic in the library catalogue. When searching group names you will likely encounter variant spellings, e.g. Gitxsan ,Gitksan or Kitksan. Search for variant spellings together by typing the Boolean operator or between each term, e.g. Carrier or Lheidli T’enneh.
When you find an appropriate title in the catalogue, click on View and then click on appropriate relevant Subject terms at the bottom of the record to see if there are any other items available on your topic.
Subject terms in the library catalogue are based on Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) or the Canadian Subject Headings. The Library of Congress standard way to describe the First Nations is by "Indians of North America", and then the Geographic region. e.g. Canada, British Columbia, etc. Ensure that you also search the names of groups.
Some useful Library of Congress Subject Headings to search include:
- Carrier Indians
- Fur trade - Canada – History
- Indian reservations
- Indian women
- Indian youth
- Indian reservations
- Indians of North America
- Indians of North America – Canada
- Indians of North America – Northwest coast of North America
- Indigenous peoples
- Indigenous peoples – Canada
- Metis
- Native peoples
- Native peoples - Canada
- Native peoples - Canada - Residential schools
If you don't find enough appropriate material on your topic in the CNC Library, check bibliographies to find references to other works that have been published on your topic. Then once again check the CNC Library catalogue, other local libraries or order the items from out of town libraries via the Interlibrary Loan service. Obtaining books or journals via Interlibrary Loan can take up to two weeks, so do your research early.
Ebooks
When you search the library catalogue or the Discovery Service search system you will find a nice selection of ebooks. These are books you can read online by simply opening them. Here are some examples:
Step 3: Use Periodical Articles
Periodicals offer excellent information. To locate articles in your subject area, use the online indexes . Click on the Library's Databases link and navigate to the Ebscohost online Canadian Reference Centre, Academic Search Complete, the Ebooks Collection, or CBCA, Canadian News, Business (Proquest). Once you have located article citations, if the article is not in fulltext online click on the “Request this Item” link on the article record to request the material. Remember to order interlibrary loan items early!
If you would like to find a quick selection of all types of materials - books, ebooks, and periodical articles - use the Discovery Search box on the library home page. Enter your search words in the box and click on "search" to get a list.
Have fun! If you have comments or suggestions, email me at lovittj@cnc.bc.ca