User:Neuhausr/Native America in OSM

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I am drafting a page here, with the idea to get feedback and eventually put it under the WikiProject_United_States/Projects

Native American peoples once were the sole inhabitants of the land now called the United States. The features below are some suggested ways to map their past as well as current place on the land. See Native Americans in the United States on Wikipedia

A note on terminology: The word "Indian" is the legal term used by the U.S. Government to refer to Native Americans, but outside of the legal context, there is controversy over whether it is the most appropriate terminology, though the word is often included in the names of the various tribes themselves, not always by choice. While some indigenous people are comfortable with the word "Indian," others are not. Terms such as "Native people", "Native American", or "Indigenous" are sometimes preferred, and the term "First Nations" is used to define Aboriginal people in Canada (see Tribe (Native American)#"Indian" on Wikipedia).


[what they are]

how to map

There is not a consensus on how to map reservations, in part because of their unusual legal status. Here are the proposed/used schemes, with examples.

More conversation:!topic/openstreetmap/cHzyQhpdPyU


Many places, especially natural features, have or have had names in native languages. These may be added by the name:language Multilingual names. The convention is to use name:code=* where code is a language's ISO 639-1 code, or ISO 639-2 if an ISO 639-1 code doesn't exist.

Although alternate languages are not normally rendered by most maps, they may be viewed at the Multilingual Maps Test, and of course may be downloaded and displayed by anyone.

Because native names were often misunderstood and transcribed incorrectly, special care should be given to

  1. add the name tag only to the actual feature it describes
  2. add the name in the native spelling

For example, the state name "Minnesota" is derived from the Dakota name for the Minnesota River, Mnisota Wakpa. It would not be accurate to add the Dakota name to the state since the Dakota did not call this entire area Minnesota, just the river.

Historic sites

Archeological sites

The kind of Native American site often depends on the area and what kind of marks they left on the landscape. In most cases, they can be marked as historic=archeological_site. If an subtag is recommended, it will be noted below. Note that this tag's description specifies that it may or may not actually be a site that has been excavated.

  • Mounds - common in the central and southern US, often part of "Mississippian" culture. Can be subtagged site_type=tumulus Include flat-topped pyramids, conic, effigy mounds. Example: Cahokia Mounds
  • Petroglyphs - can be subtagged site_type=petroglyph

Historic landmarks

Boarding Schools

(add examples)