Decreased populationPopulation comes from the Latin populus, meaning “the people.” We say population when we talk about a group...
War and diseases decreased the number of Indigenous people living in New France. For example, in 1500, there were around 100 000 Iroquoians; by 1745, the populationPopulation comes from the Latin populus, meaning “the people.” We say population when we talk about a group... was only about 12 000. Some Nations, like the St. Lawrence Iroquoians, no longer existed. Others had been pushed from their ancestral territoryA territory is an area of land, or sometimes of sea, that we can say "belongs"... by settlers. Although large fights between Indigenous Nations ended with the Great Peace of 1701, populations had already been affected.
“Reductions” or Reserves
Around 1745, more and more Indigenous people lived in villages, also known as “reductions,” or reserves, that the French built in the St. Lawrence Valley. This was the beginning of the reserve system. These reserves were under the authority of the religious community. French missionaries wanted to convert Indigenous Peoples to CatholicismCatholicism - Catholicism refers to the catholic religion. Catholics believe in the bible and that Jesus... and teach them the French. Indigenous Peoples worked hard to retain their traditional ways of life, knowledge, spiritual beliefs and languages.
Reserves still exist today, but the church no longer manages them. Indigenous Peoples have worked hard to obtain more autonomyAutonomy- Autonomy refers to independence; a person or a group of people’s ability to act independently... in managing their communities and preserving their diverse ways of life, cultures and beliefs.
AuthorAuthor - A person who writes something Auteur - Une personne qui écrit quelque chose: Alexandre Lanoix. Translations and adaptions by LEARN.
See also – Traces of the past:
