Population history of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas


Population figures for the Indigenous peoples of the Americas before European colonization have been difficult to establish. Estimates have varied widely from as low as 8 million to as many as 100 million, though by the end of the 20th century, many scholars gravitated toward an estimate of around 50 million people.
The monarchs of the nascent Spanish Empire decided to fund Christopher Columbus' voyage in 1492, leading to the establishment of colonies and marking the beginning of the migration of millions of Europeans and Africans to the Americas. While the population of European settlers, primarily from Spain, Portugal, France, England, and the Netherlands, along with African slaves, grew steadily, the Indigenous population plummeted. There are numerous reasons for the population decline, including exposure to Eurasian diseases such as influenza, pneumonic plagues, and smallpox; direct violence by settlers and their allies through war and forced removal; and the general disruption of societies. Scholarly disputes remain over the degree to which each factor contributed or should be emphasized; some modern scholars have categorized it as a genocide, claiming that deliberate, systematic actions by Europeans were the primary cause. Traditional interpretation of the decline by scholars have disputed this characterization, maintaining that incidental disease exposure was the primary cause. This is supported by evidence where 50-80 percent of the population died from waves of diseases caused by Europeans in places such as Mexico in the 16th century.

Population overview

Pre-Columbian population figures are difficult to estimate because of the fragmentary nature of the evidence. Estimates range from 8–112 million. Scholars have varied widely on the estimated size of the Indigenous populations prior to colonization and on the effects of European contact. Estimates are made by extrapolations from small bits of data. In 1976, geographer William Denevan used the existing estimates to derive a "consensus count" of about 54 million people. Nonetheless, more recent estimates still range widely. In 1992, Denevan suggested that the total population was approximately 53.9 million and the populations by region were, approximately, 3.8 million for the United States and Canada, 17.2 million for Mexico, 5.6 million for Central America, 3 million for the Caribbean, 15.7 million for the Andes and 8.6 million for lowland South America. A 2020 genetic study suggests that prior estimates for the pre-Columbian Caribbean population may have been at least tenfold too large. Historian David Stannard estimates that the extermination of Indigenous peoples took the lives of 100 million people: "...the total extermination of many American Indian peoples and the near-extermination of others, in numbers that eventually totaled close to 100,000,000." A 2019 study estimates the pre-Columbian Indigenous population contained more than 60 million people, but dropped to 6 million by 1600, based on a drop in atmospheric during that period. Other studies have disputed this conclusion.
The Indigenous population of the Americas in 1492 was not necessarily at a high point and may actually have already been in decline in some areas. Indigenous populations in most areas of the Americas reached a low point by the early 20th century.
Using an estimate of approximately 37 million people in Mexico, Central and South America in 1492, the lowest estimates give a population decrease from all causes of 80% by the end of the 17th century. Latin America would match its 15th-century population early in the 19th century; it numbered 17 million in 1800, 30 million in 1850, 61 million in 1900, 105 million in 1930, 218 million in 1960, 361 million in 1980, and 563 million in 2005. In the last three decades of the 16th century, the population of present-day Mexico dropped to about one million people. The Maya population is today estimated at six million, which is about the same as at the end of the 15th century, according to some estimates. In what is now Brazil, the Indigenous population declined from a pre-Cabraline high of an estimated four million to some 300,000. Over 60 million Brazilians possess at least one Native South American ancestor, according to a DNA study.
While it is difficult to determine exactly how many Natives lived in Northern America before Columbus, most estimates range from 2.5 million to 7 million people, with one study estimating up to 18 million. Scholars vary on the estimated size of the Indigenous population in what is now Canada prior to colonization and on the effects of European contact. During the late 15th century is estimated to have been between 200,000 and two million, with a figure of 500,000 currently accepted by Canada's Royal Commission on Aboriginal Health. Although not without conflict, European Canadians' early interactions with First Nations and Inuit populations were relatively peaceful. However repeated outbreaks of European infectious diseases such as influenza, measles, and smallpox, combined with other effects of European contact, resulted in a twenty-five percent to eighty percent Indigenous population decrease post-contact. Roland G Robertson suggests that during the late 1630s, smallpox killed over half of the Wyandot, who controlled most of the early North American fur trade in the area of New France. In 1871 there was an enumeration of the Indigenous population within the limits of Canada at the time, showing a total of only 102,358 individuals. From 2006 to 2016, the Indigenous population has grown by 42.5 percent, four times the national rate. According to the 2011 Canadian census, Indigenous peoples numbered at 1,400,685, or 4.3% of the country's total population.
The population debate has often had ideological underpinnings. Low estimates, such as those from Kroeber in 1939, claiming only 8.4 million inhabitants in the entire western hemisphere, were often reflective of European notions of cultural and racial superiority, especially in the early 20th century when white supremacist ideology still had a strong influence on fields such as anthropology. Historian Francis Jennings argued, "Scholarly wisdom long held that Indians were so inferior in mind and works that they could not possibly have created or sustained large populations." Most scholars held these lower estimates as factual until the 1960s, when anthropologist Henry Dobyns published research applying historical and archaeological data to assert a far higher pre-Columbian population of possibly over 100 million, including up to 9-12 million in what is now the US and Canada, setting off significant academic debate over the question. Despite widespread acceptance that the early estimates were too low, multiple researchers have also called very high estimates such as Dobyns into question as well. In 1998, Africanist Historian David Henige claimed that many population estimates are the result of "arbitrary formulas" applied from unreliable sources. Most newer estimates of the pre-Columbian population in the Americas fall between 45 and 60 million people, including those from Denevan and Alchon, while a 2018 study estimates a population of just over 60 million, based on carbon records.

Estimations

Estimations by tribe

Population size for Native American tribes is very difficult to state definitively, but at least one writer has made estimates, often based on an assumed proportion of the number of warriors to total population for the tribe. Many of these estimates are based on observations by contemporary European explorers or settlers passing through Native American territories. Typical proportions were 5 people per one warrior and at least 1 up to 5 warriors per lodge, cabin or house.
RankCultural AreaRegionTribe or nationHighest pop. estimateYearTowns/
villages
Lodges/cabins/houses/tents/tipis etc.Sources of estimates
1Great PlainsLouisiana PurchaseSioux150,000 – 50,000 176240+5,000 lodges in 1846, averaging over ten people per lodgeLt. James Gorrell and A. Ramsey
2SE WoodlandsOld SouthwestChoctaw125,0001718102102 towns enumerated by SwantonLe Page du Pratz and J. R. Swanton
3NE WoodlandsOld NorthwestIllinois100,000165860Jean de Quen
4aGreat BasinMexican CessionShoshone60,0001820Jedidiah Morse
4bGreat PlainsLouisiana PurchaseEastern Shoshone20,0001820Jedidiah Morse
5SouthwestMexican CessionPueblo Tigua 78,100+1626207,000 houses only in two largest pueblosAlonso de Benavides
6aGreat PlainsLouisiana PurchaseBlackfoot in the US37,500 – 30,000 1836George Catlin
6bGreat PlainsPrairies, CanadaBlackfoot in Canada37,500 – 30,000 1836George Catlin
7NE WoodlandsMiddle ColoniesIroquois70,0001690226Nearly 60 towns destroyed in 1779L. A. de Lahontan and John R. Swanton
8SouthwestMexican CessionApache60,0001700José de Urrutia
9SE WoodlandsSouthern ColoniesMuscogee confederacy including Hitchiti50,0001794100James Seagrove and Henry Knox
10SouthwestMexican CessionHopi50,00015847Antonio de Espejo
11NE WoodlandsOld SouthwestShawnee50,000 – 15,000 154038+M. A. Jaimes & Pierre d'Iberville
12Great PlainsLouisiana PurchaseCrow 45,0001834Samuel Gardner Drake
13NE WoodlandsOntario, CanadaHurons 40,000163232Gabriel Sagard and J. Lalemant
14Great PlainsTexas AnnexationComanche40,0001832George Catlin and J. Morse
15SouthwestMexican CessionPueblo Tano/Maguas including Pecos40,000158411Antonio de Espejo
16NE WoodlandsOld NorthwestMiami40,000165720+Gabriel Druillettes
17NE WoodlandsLouisiana PurchaseIoways40,000176216+Lt. James Gorrell
18aGreat PlainsLouisiana PurchasePiegan in the US30,0001700George Bird Grinnell
18bGreat PlainsAlberta, CanadaPiegan in Canada10,0001700George Bird Grinnell
19Great PlainsLouisiana PurchasePawnee38,0001719385,000 – 6,000 cabins/lodges & 7,600 warriorsClaude Du Tisne and L. Krzywicki
20aNE WoodlandsOld NorthwestOjibwe in the US18,0001860Emmanuel Domenech
20bNE WoodlandsOntario, CanadaOjibwe in Canada18,0001860Emmanuel Domenech
21aGreat PlainsLouisiana PurchaseAssiniboine in the US17,500182315+W. H. Keating and G. C. Beltrami
21bGreat PlainsPrairies, CanadaAssiniboine in Canada17,500182315+W. H. Keating and G. C. Beltrami
22NE WoodlandsAcadia, CanadaMi'kmaq35,0001500Virginia P. Miller
23SE WoodlandsSpanish FloridaApalachee34,000163511+J. R. Swanton
24SouthwestMexican CessionNavajo 30,000+1626In 1910 still numbered 29,624 people in Arizona and New MexicoAlonso de Benavides
25SE WoodlandsOld SouthwestCherokee30,0001735201201 towns enumerated by SwantonJ. Adair and Ga. Hist. Coll., II
26SE WoodlandsSouthern ColoniesTuscarora30,000160024D. Cusick
27NE WoodlandsNew EnglandNarragansett30,00016428+R. Smith junior quoted by S. G. Drake and J. R. Swanton
28NE WoodlandsMiddle ColoniesMohican confederacy30,000160016+J. A. Maurault and J. R. Swanton
29NE WoodlandsNew EnglandMassachusett30,000160023+J. A. Maurault and J. R. Swanton
30SouthwestMexican CessionJemez Pueblo30,000158411Antonio de Espejo
31SE WoodlandsSpanish FloridaTimucua tribes30,000163514144 missions in 1635: 30,000 Christian IndiansJ. R. Swanton
32Northwest CoastBritish Columbia, CanadaClayoquot 30,0001780Ho. Doc. 1839–1840 and Meares
33aSubarctic & ArcticSaskatchewan, CanadaWoods Cree in Saskatchewan5,6001670James Mooney
33bSubarctic & ArcticManitoba, CanadaCree living in Manitoba4,2501670James Mooney
33cSubarctic & ArcticAlberta, CanadaWoodland Cree in Alberta3,0501670James Mooney
33dSubarctic & ArcticOntario, CanadaSwampy Cree in Ontario2,1001670James Mooney
33eSubarctic & ArcticOntario, CanadaMoose Cree 5,0001600James Mooney
33fGreat PlainsPrairies, CanadaPlains Cree7,0001853David G. Mandelbaum
34aGreat BasinMexican CessionUte living in Utah13,0501867Indian Affairs 1867
34bGreat BasinMexican CessionUte living in Colorado7,0001866Indian Affairs 1866
34cGreat BasinMexican CessionUte living in New Mexico6,0001846–1854H. H. Davis and Indian Affairs 1854
35SE WoodlandsOld SouthwestMabila 25,0001540Mississippian chiefdom under chief Tuskaloosa, about 5,000 warriorsLudwik Krzywicki
36Northwest CoastOregon CountryChinook tribes22,00017801,000 lodges just among the Lower ChinookJames Mooney and Duflot de Mofras
37NE WoodlandsOld NorthwestMascouten20,0001679They consisted of 12 sub-tribesClaude Dablon
38SE WoodlandsOld SouthwestChickasaw20,000168727+Louis Hennepin
39NE WoodlandsOntario, CanadaNeutrals20,000161640Samuel de Champlain
40SouthwestMexican CessionZuni Pueblo20,000158412Antonio de Espejo
41SouthwestMexican CessionPueblo Tewa/Ubates20,00015845Antonio de Espejo
42NE WoodlandsNew EnglandPequots20,000160021Daniel Gookin and J. R. Swanton
43Great PlainsLouisiana PurchaseSkidi20,000168722At least 4,400 cabins George Bird Grinnell
44SE WoodlandsLouisiana PurchaseNatchez20,000171560Pierre Charlevoix
45SouthwestMexican CessionPueblo Punames20,00015845Zia was the largest of 5 Puname pueblosAntonio de Espejo
46NE WoodlandsMiddle ColoniesLenape 18,4001635–1648118R. Evelin, Th. Donaldson & Swanton
47Great PlainsLouisiana PurchaseMandan17,500 – 15,000 1738171,000+ lodges and 3,500 warriorsW. Sanstead & Indian Affairs 1836
48Great PlainsLouisiana PurchaseAtsina 16,8001837Still reported at 16,800 in 1841Indian Affairs 1837
49SE WoodlandsSouthern ColoniesPowhatan confederacy16,6001616161William Strachey and John Smith
50NE WoodlandsMiddle ColoniesNanticoke confederacy16,500160016+John Smith and J. R. Swanton
51Great PlainsLouisiana PurchaseArikaras16,000170048Kinglsey M. Bray
52Northwest CoastBritish Columbia, CanadaVancouver Island Salish15,5001780Herbert C. Taylor
53Great PlainsLouisiana PurchaseArapaho15,2501812M. R. Stuart
54Great PlainsLouisiana PurchaseWichita confederacy15,000+1772Juan de Ripperda
55SouthwestMexican CessionPueblo Keres15,00015847Antonio de Espejo
56NE WoodlandsNew EnglandAbenaki15,000160031J. A. Maurault and J. R. Swanton
57NE WoodlandsNew EnglandPennacook confederacy15,0001674Daniel Gookin
58NE WoodlandsNew EnglandWampanoag 15,000160030Daniel Gookin and J. R. Swanton
59NE WoodlandsLouisiana PurchaseMissouria15,0001764H. Bouquet and J. Buchanan
60Great PlainsLouisiana PurchaseHidatsa15,0001835William M. Denevan
61NE WoodlandsOntario, CanadaOttawa 15,000 – 13,150 1777L. Houck and J. C. Colhoun
62SouthwestTexas AnnexationCoahuiltecan tribes15,0001690James Mooney
63NE WoodlandsOld NorthwestMishinimaki15,000160030Claude Dablon
64SouthwestMexican CessionTaos Pueblo 15,00015401+Relacion del Suceso
65NE WoodlandsOld NorthwestErie14,5001653J. N. B. Hewitt
66Northwest CoastBritish Columbia, CanadaKwakiutl tribes excluding Haisla14,5001780Herbert C. Taylor
67Northwest CoastBritish Columbia, CanadaNootka tribes14,0001780Herbert C. Taylor
68NE WoodlandsMiddle ColoniesWappinger confederacy13,500160068E. J. Boesch and J. R. Swanton
69NE WoodlandsOntario, CanadaMississaugas 12,000+17443+Arthur Dobbs
70Northwest CoastBritish Columbia, CanadaCoast Salish 12,0001835Wilson Duff & J. Mooney
71Subarctic & ArcticDistrict of Franklin, CanadaDistrict of Franklin Inuit12,0001670James Mooney
72Northwest CoastBritish Columbia, CanadaLekwiltok10,5201839HBC Indian Census 1839
73Northwest CoastOregon CountryPuget Sound Salish tribes10,3001780Herbert C. Taylor
74SE WoodlandsSouthern ColoniesCatawba10,0001700R. Mills and H. Lewis Scaife
75SouthwestMexican CessionAkimel O'odham 10,0001850S. Mowry
76Great PlainsLouisiana PurchaseCheyenne10,00018561,000 lodges and 2,000 warriorsThomas S. Twiss
77Northwest CoastBritish Columbia, CanadaChilkat10,0001869F. K. Louthan
78SouthwestMexican CessionPueblo Tompiro10,000162615Alonso de Benavides
79NE WoodlandsOld NorthwestMenominee10,0001778H. R. Schoolcraft
80SouthwestMexican CessionMohave 10,0001869William Abraham Bell
81SouthwestTexas AnnexationJumanos10,00015845+5 large townsAntonio de Espejo
82SE WoodlandsFlorida PurchaseSeminole10,000183693N. G. Taylor and Capt. Hugh Young
83SE WoodlandsSpanish FloridaCalusa10,000157056Lopez de Velasco & J. R. Swanton
84Great PlainsTexas AnnexationKichai, Waco, Tawakoni10,0001719Benard de La Harpe
85Northwest PlateauOregon CountryPisquow and Sinkiuse-Columbia10,0001780James Teit
86NE WoodlandsQuebec, CanadaSt. Lawrence Iroquoians10,0001500Also known as LaurentiansGary Warrick & Louis Lesage
87Northwest PlateauOregon CountryBitterroot Salish 9,0001821M. R. Stuart
88Great BasinOregon CountryBannock and Diggers9,00018481,200 lodges of southern Bannock Joseph L. Meek and Jim Bridger
89SouthwestMexican CessionPiro Pueblo9,000150014John R. Swanton and Alonso de Benavides
90SE WoodlandsLouisiana PurchaseCaddo tribes8,5001690James Mooney
91Northwest CoastBritish Columbia, CanadaHaida 8,400178742+C. F. Newcombe
92Great BasinMexican CessionPaiute8,2001859John Weiss Forney
93NE WoodlandsLouisiana PurchaseOsage8,000181917Th. Nuttall, Iberville and H. Bouquet
94Great PlainsLouisiana PurchaseKansa 8,0001764Henry Bouquet
95Northwest PlateauOregon CountryNez Perce8,0001806Isaac Ingalls Stevens
96NE WoodlandsOntario, CanadaTionontati 8,000160099 towns, 600 families in the main townJames Mooney & Jes. Rel. XXXV
97Subarctic & ArcticCanadaChipewyan7,5001812Samuel Gardner Drake
98Northwest PlateauBritish Columbia, CanadaSecwepemc 7,2001850James Teit and A. C. Anderson
99Great PlainsLouisiana PurchaseOmaha, Ponca7,2001702Pierre d'Iberville
100SE WoodlandsSouthern ColoniesYamasee7,000170210Guillaume Delisle
101SE WoodlandsSouthern ColoniesConoy 7,000+160013+W. M. Denevan & J. R. Swanton
102Northwest CoastOregon CountryUmpqua7,0001835Samuel Parker
103Northwest CoastBritish Columbia, CanadaTsimshian of British Columbia and Nisga'a7,0001780James Mooney
104SouthwestMexican CessionTohono Oʼodham 6,800186319Indian Affairs 1863
105NE WoodlandsQuebec, CanadaAlgonquin 6,5001860Emmanuel Domenech
106NE WoodlandsOld NorthwestSauk 6,5001786Wisconsin Hist. Coll., XII
107NE WoodlandsOld NorthwestPotawatomi6,5001829Peter Buell Porter & McKenney
108NE WoodlandsOld NorthwestMeskwaki 6,4001835Cutting Marsh in Wisconsin Hist. Coll., XV
109SouthwestMexican CessionAcoma Pueblo6,00015841+500+ housesAntonio de Espejo
110NE WoodlandsOld NorthwestWea6,00017185N. Y. Col. Dcts., IX
111SE WoodlandsLouisiana PurchaseQuapaw 6,00015414+Fidalgo D'Elvas
112Northwest PlateauOregon CountryYakama6,0001857A. N. Armstrong
113NE WoodlandsMiddle ColoniesMontauk6,000160020J. R. Swanton
114Northwest CoastOregon CountryAlsea, Siuslaw, Yaquina and Luckton6,0001780110James Mooney and James Owen Dorsey
115NE WoodlandsOld NorthwestHo-Chunk 5,8001818Jedidiah Morse
116Northwest CoastOregon CountryRogue River Indians 5,6001780James Mooney
117Northwest PlateauOregon CountryKutenai 5,6001820Jedidiah Morse
118SouthwestMexican CessionQuechan 5,5001775–1855A. F. Bandelier, Ten Kate
119Subarctic & ArcticQuebec, CanadaInnu and Naskapi5,500160017+James Mooney and J. R. Swanton
120Great PlainsLouisiana PurchaseKiowa5,4501805–1807Z. M. Pike
121Northwest PlateauOregon CountryPalouse 5,4001780James Mooney and J. R. Swanton
122NE WoodlandsMiddle ColoniesSusquehanna 5,000160020+James Mooney and J. R. Swanton
123NE WoodlandsNew EnglandPocumtuk5,0001600Pocumtuc History
124Northwest PlateauBritish Columbia, CanadaNlaka'pamux5,0001858James Teit & A. C. Anderson
125Northwest PlateauBritish Columbia, CanadaDakelh 5,0001835A. C. Anderson and J. Mooney
126Northwest PlateauOregon CountryKlikitat 5,0001829Paul Kane
127SE WoodlandsTexas AnnexationHasinai confederacy5,0001716Herbert Eugene Bolton
128Northwest CoastOregon CountryMakah5,000+1805John R. Jewitt
129SE WoodlandsOld SouthwestYuchi 5,000 – 2,500 1550William Bartram & Carolina – The Native Americans
130SouthwestMexican CessionHalyikwamai5,0001605Juan de Oñate
131Subarctic & ArcticDistrict of Mackenzie, CanadaDistrict of Mackenzie Inuit4,8001670James Mooney
132Northwest PlateauBritish Columbia, CanadaChilcotin 4,6001793A. G. Morice and HBC employees
133Northwest PlateauOregon CountryChopunnish4,3001806Extinct native American tribes of North America
134NE WoodlandsMiddle ColoniesHonniasont4,000+1662John R. Swanton
135NE WoodlandsNew EnglandNiantic4,0001500Capers Jones
136SE WoodlandsLouisiana PurchaseChitimacha4,0001699300+ cabins and 800 warriorsBenard de La Harpe
137Northwest PlateauBritish Columbia, CanadaLillooet 4,0001780James Mooney and J. Teit
138Northwest PlateauOregon CountryModoc & Klamath4,0001868Indian Affairs 1868
139SE WoodlandsSouthern ColoniesWeapemeoc 4,00015855+S. R. Grenville
140Northwest PlateauOregon CountrySahaptin4,0001857A. N. Armstrong
141SE WoodlandsSouthern ColoniesGuale4,0001650J. R. Swanton
142Subarctic & ArcticCanadaKutchin 4,0001871Censuses of Canada, 1665 to 1871
143Northwest PlateauOregon CountrySkitswish4,0001800James Teit
144Northwest CoastOregon CountryWappatoo tribes3,6001780James Mooney
145Subarctic & ArcticNunatsiavut, Labrador, CanadaLabrador Inuit3,6001600J. Mooney & Kroeber
146Northwest CoastOregon CountryNisqually3,6001780James Mooney
147SE WoodlandsSouthern ColoniesChowanoc3,500+15855Carolina – The Native Americans
148SE WoodlandsOld SouthwestAcolapissa3,5001600120+ cabinsAcolapissa History
149Northwest PlateauOregon CountryColville3,5001806Isaac Ingalls Stevens
150Northwest PlateauBritish Columbia, CanadaBabine 3,5001780James Mooney
151SouthwestMexican CessionHavasupai and Tonto Apaches3,5001854Amiel Weeks Whipple
152Great PlainsLouisiana PurchasePlains Apache 3,3751818Jedidiah Morse
153Subarctic & ArcticBritish Columbia, CanadaSekani 3,2001780James Mooney and Sekani Indians of Canada
154Subarctic & ArcticNewfoundland and Labrador, CanadaBeothuk3,0501500Ralph T. Pastore, Leslie Upton
155SE WoodlandsOld SouthwestAlabama 3,00017646Henry Bouquet
156NE WoodlandsNew EnglandNantucket3,000166010J. Barber in J. Chase and J. R. Swanton
157SE WoodlandsSouthern ColoniesNottoway3,0001586R. Lane in Hakluyt, VIII
158Great PlainsTexas AnnexationTonkawa3,0001814John F. Schermerhorn
159Northwest PlateauOregon CountryWallawalla 3,0001848Miss A. J. Allen
160Northwest PlateauOregon CountrySpokan 3,0001848Joseph L. Meek
161Northwest PlateauBritish Columbia, CanadaOkinagan 3,0001780Also spelled OkanaganJames Teit
162NE WoodlandsOntario, CanadaNipissing3,0001764Th. Hutchins in H. R. Schoolcraft
163NE WoodlandsNew EnglandShawomets and Cowsetts 3,0001500Capers Jones
164SouthwestMexican CessionHalchidhoma3,00017998J. Cortez
165SouthwestMexican CessionPiipaash 3,0001799J. Cortez and Francisco Garcés
166SE WoodlandsOld SouthwestTaposa and Ibitoupa3,0001699Baudry de Lozieres
167Northwest PlateauOregon CountryMultnomah3,0001830Hall J. Kelley
168Subarctic & ArcticDistrict of Keewatin, CanadaDistrict of Keewatin Inuit3,0001670James Mooney
169SE WoodlandsSpanish FloridaPotano3,0001650James Mooney
170SouthwestMexican CessionCocopah3,00017759Francisco Garcés and de Oñate
171Northwest PlateauOregon CountryKalapuya tribes3,0001780Eight tribes or bandsJames Mooney
172SouthwestMexican CessionCajuenche 3,0001680James Mooney
173SouthwestMexican CessionPueblo Picuris3,00016801+Agustín de Vetancurt
174NE WoodlandsNew EnglandMartha's Vineyard Wampanoag 3,00016428Lloyd C. M. Hare and J. R. Swanton
175NE WoodlandsOld NorthwestKickapoo3,0001759J. R. Swanton
176Northwest PlateauOregon CountryWatlala2,8001805Lewis and Clark
177SouthwestTexas AnnexationKarankawa2,8001690James Mooney
178NE WoodlandsAcadia, CanadaWolastoqiyik 2,7501764Th. Hutchins in H. R. Schoolcraft
179Northwest CoastBritish Columbia, CanadaHeiltsuk and Haisla2,7001780James Mooney
180NE WoodlandsNew EnglandMohegan2,500168021Mass. Hist. Coll. and J. R. Swanton
181Northwest PlateauOregon CountryClackamas2,500178011James Mooney
182SouthwestMexican CessionYavapai2,5001869J. Ross Browne
183NE WoodlandsNew EnglandNipmuc2,500150029Capers Jones and J. R. Swanton
184Subarctic & ArcticNorthwest Territories, CanadaInuvialuit2,5001850Jessica M. Shadian, Mark Nuttall
185NE WoodlandsMiddle ColoniesManhasset 2,5001500E. M. Ruttenber
186Northwest CoastOregon CountrySnohomish2,5001844Duflot de Mofras
187SE WoodlandsOld SouthwestMosopelea, Koroa, and Tioux 2,4501700J. R. Swanton
188Northwest PlateauOregon CountryCowlitz2,40018223Jedidiah Morse
189NE WoodlandsNew EnglandPenobscot2,250170214N. H. Hist. Coll., I and J. R. Swanton
190SE WoodlandsOld SouthwestTunica2,25016987260 cabins and 450 warriorsJ. G. Shea and J. R. Swanton
191Northwest PlateauOregon CountryKalispel2,2501835–1850HBC agents & Joseph Lane
192Great PlainsAlberta, CanadaSarcee 2,2001832220 tents, on average 10 people per tentGeorge Catlin and John Maclean
193Northwest CoastOregon CountryTillamook2,200182010Jedidiah Morse
194Subarctic & ArcticYukon, CanadaYukon Inuit2,2001670James Mooney
195Northwest PlateauOregon CountryTapanash including Skinpah2,2001780James Mooney
196SE WoodlandsOld SouthwestYazoo2,000+1700Dumont de Montigny
197Subarctic & ArcticBritish Columbia, CanadaNahani and Tahltan in British Columbia2,0001780James Mooney
198NE WoodlandsNew EnglandNauset2,000160024W. M. Denevan & J. R. Swanton
199NE WoodlandsMiddle ColoniesWenro2,0001600J. N. B. Hewitt
200Subarctic & ArcticDistrict of Mackenzie, CanadaAwokanak 2,0001857Emile Petitot
201SouthwestMexican CessionHualapai 2,0001869J. Ross Browne
202Northwest PlateauOregon CountryCayuse2,0001835Samuel Parker
203Northwest PlateauBritish Columbia, CanadaSinixt 2,000+178020+James Teit
204Northwest CoastBritish Columbia, CanadaNuxalk 2,0001835Wilson Duff
205Northwest CoastBritish Columbia, CanadaQuatsino2,0001839HBC Indian Census 1839
206Great PlainsSaskatchewan, CanadaFall Indians 2,0001804Extinct Native American tribes of North America
207Northwest CoastOregon CountrySamish2,000+1845Edmund Clare Fitzhugh
208Subarctic & ArcticDistrict of Athabasca, CanadaEtheneldeli2,0001875Émile Petitot
209Northwest CoastOregon CountryKlallam2,0001780James Mooney
210SE WoodlandsOld SouthwestChakchiuma2,0001702400 families in 1702Bienville
211Northwest CoastOregon CountryCoos and Miluk2,0001780James Mooney
212SouthwestMexican CessionQnigyuma 2,0001680James Mooney
213SE WoodlandsSouthern ColoniesCusabo and Cusso1,9001600James Mooney & Carolina – The Native Americans
214Northwest CoastOregon CountryChimnapum 1,860180542 lodgesLewis and Clark
215Northwest PlateauOregon CountryWanapum 1,8001780James Mooney
216Northwest CoastBritish Columbia, CanadaSquamish 1,8001780James Mooney
217Subarctic & ArcticNunavik, Quebec, CanadaNunavik Inuit1,8001600James Mooney
218SE WoodlandsOld SouthwestHouma1,7501699140 cabins and 350 warriorsPierre d'Iberville
219Northwest CoastOregon CountryShahala1,7001780James Mooney
220Northwest PlateauOregon CountrySanpoil1,700178045+ housesVerne F. Ray and George Gibbs
221Northwest CoastOregon CountryCoquille1,650180033James Owen Dorsey
222SE WoodlandsSouthern Colonies