This is an All Ears English Podcast, episode 2378.
Are you making this mistake when you refer to native speakers?
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There is a common mistake that we've heard when it comes to talking about native speakers.
Find out what it is today.
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Hey Aubrey, how's it going today?
I'm great, how are you, Lindsay?
Good, I'm glad to be recording on the microphone but I have a question for you today.
Okay, perfect. Okay, so what do you think, what comes to your mind when someone says the word native?
Oh, that is an interesting question because not just one thing.
I definitely think of Native Americans.
I think of the restaurant native New Yorker.
I think of native English speakers I mean someone's saying they're a native of Boston.
Yes, this word so many ways in English.
Yeah, we really do It's all over the place.
But today we're gonna hone in on one interesting aspect of this word native Tell us what we're talking about today, Abri Yeah So there's a very common mistake in English by English learners to call all native English speakers in the US Native Americans And often if they mean to say native English speakers, then they'll say Native Americans just thinking all English speakers in America.
This is tricky because we do call them native speakers, but Native Americans has a very specific meaning.
Yes, I love that. So we want to draw attention to this and make sure that we stop this mistake right here and get really clear on the terms for when we're talking about, again, native speakers of English and then Aubrey we're gonna go into another area which is super important in our in our culture right?
What are we gonna get into?
Yes the terms have really evolved for Native Americans the terms that they prefer that everyone use and especially that non -Native Americans use so we're going to go into that, the evolution of language, respectful terms. This is very important in US culture so not only are you learning about the differences and all the ways that we use native, but also some of these very important language changes.
Yes. Great topic today.
Super important topic today.
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All right. All right.
Let's dive into native.
All right. Yes. So of course we use this term to talk about people whose first language, whose mother tongue is English or Spanish, right?
Native Spanish speakers, native English speakers, that's just if it's your first language.
Yeah. So you could also say native speakers of English.
You could also say native speakers of American English.
I suppose you could say that as well.
What do you think, Aubrey?
Or native speakers of British English, right?
Exactly. Or native British English speakers.
A lot of options here.
You might ask someone, are you a native speaker?
This just means is this your first language?
Is this your mother tongue?
Yeah, but the key takeaway here guys is we don't wanna say Native Americans when we mean to say native speakers of English, okay?
Different thing. All right, good.
Yeah, Native Americans, let's go into that next.
This refers to indigenous peoples in the United States.
So you might say, my best friend is Native American, she's Cherokee, right?
So this has a very different meaning than native English speakers, right?
Anyone whose first language is English, you can refer to that as, but if you say native Americans, you are specifically referring to these indigenous people.
Yes, and historically, we've used a term which we don't want to use anymore.
And what is that term to talk about Native Americans that we used to use?
Yes, so they used to often be referred to as American Indians or just Indians.
This is because when Christopher Columbus came, he thought he was landing in India, he was very wrong.
So this mistake just sort of was passed down through time through language, but we now know that the preferred term is either Native Americans or indigenous people or natives.
Yeah, important to know.
Love this, super, super important to know and Abbry, you brought some information from a panel, there was a panel that happened.
When and where did this happen?
Yeah, so this was May 2021 in Mississippi, and what's really interesting about this panel is the contributors were from many different Native nations.
So what's tricky when it comes to Native Americans is there are 574 federally recognized Native nations, all with their own unique history, language, government.
And so there is no set rulebook or guidebook for the terms that all of these governments, these nations would prefer.
So this panel was great because it had people from a lot of different nations that could share sort of generally use these terms. Generally, these terms are what we would prefer, but then they made a really good point that you should definitely ask if you know Native Americans, ask them what terms they would prefer.
Because we can't assume that every one of them would prefer these terms. Absolutely.
100%. So always ask the question.
I mean, that's a good, that's a best practice no matter who we're talking with.
How would you like to be addressed?
Right? Those conversations actually build connection and it build respect.
Right. Exactly. It's the same with someone's name, right?
If we ask someone, if they go by a nickname or if we're pronouncing their name correctly.
We want to know as much as possible just like you said, Lindsay, to build that connection to make sure we're being respectful.
Yeah. So, we have a direct quote from the panel, which we can glean a lot of insight from here, Aubrey, right?
Yeah, do you want to read it?
Yeah. Okay. Here's what they said on the panel.
In terms of the term Native American, if you're talking about groups of people from multiple nations, use Native American, Native, or Indigenous.
Ideally, if you can, check with the group to determine how they'd like to be referenced.
You may see the term American Indian use too.
Native Governance Center does not recommend that non -native folks use the terms American Indian or Indian, however, this is a matter of preference, you may find that another native organization recommends something different.
So again, you just need to ask, right?
Definitely, right. Best to ask on an individual level but in general, best to avoid the term Indian or American Indian, right?
Native Americans are safe here.
But there were some other really interesting language terms, evolution, of terms that I used and was familiar with as a young person, as a young adult that I saw from this panel that I think we should share.
I think it's really good to know all of these terms and make sure that we're using the most respectful terms possible.
Yeah, exactly. So when we were kids in school, we always learned the word reservation, right?
Right. At least in the 80s and the 90s, we learned that.
But now we want to say something different.
What is that, Aubrey?
What is the better term to use?
Yeah, native lands.
So this is land owned by Native Americans.
You might say, you know, there are a lot of native lands in Arizona.
There are a lot of native lands just north of where I live.
Yes. And this is a hard habit to break for a lot of Americans, a lot of us in the States because we're used to saying reservation like you said.
but I can definitely understand why, right.
There is a very important reason for these language changes.
If some of these terms really are reminders of atrocities and colonial colonization, I can understand wanting the terms to be changed.
Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely.
And the way to show that respect and build the relationship is to adhere to these and respect them.
So number three, actually, I hadn't, this is interesting.
Right. So the word tribe is what we originally learned in school, but what has happened with the word tribe?
Yeah, so this panel was saying that most Native Americans would prefer that we use the term nation instead of tribe.
And this is because globally, we have sort of trivialized the term tribe, we'll say, I've found my tribe, she means like, I've found people that are like me, or bride tribe, you've heard, probably, right.
So So they would prefer the term nation that shows respect for sovereignty and the fact that native nations each have their own system of government.
I think what's happened is marketing has gotten its hands on the term tribe.
Marketing, psychology and marketing, and it's used to create communities, right?
I don't think we use that term here at Aller's English, but I've seen other brands, podcasts, communities that do use that term, and it's marketing, right, to bring together a group.
really interesting.
Yeah, you understand that.
They're not saying, you know, how dare you don't call yourselves tribes, they're saying, you know, we would actually prefer you not use that term to refer to us, right, we are native nations.
And good to know, because that is also a big change from the language I used as a young adult.
Yes, super interesting.
Love it. Do you ever feel like a broken record repeating the same basic English words over and over again?
The words are safe, you know what they mean, but sometimes you just need more precise words to have a more profound conversation.
Nuanced and complex vocabulary is one of the many things that you get in our B2 English Fluency Course and now you have new ways to practice your English live like fluency parties, open conversation club, and even weekly Q &A at the English fluency course but the offer does end on Sunday save up to $50 and get a free bonus course expires March 30th at midnight go to all ears English comm slash B to that all ears English comm slash letter B number to see you there okay Aubrey oh we have a role play so this would be interesting as a role play.
Let's see what this looks like.
What's the scenario here?
Yeah, so you and I are acquaintances that have run into each other at a party, and we have been just getting to know each other better.
Want to start us out?
Yes. I heard you're learning Spanish.
Is that right? Yes.
My goal is to be able to speak as well as a native speaker.
But I've got a long way to go.
Same. I've been learning Spanish off and on for a long time, but getting to that native speaker level is no joke.
You're a native of Boston, right?
No, actually I was born and raised in New Hampshire.
What about you? Oh, I'm from Idaho, but I've lived in Arizona for over 20 years.
Are there a lot of native lands in Idaho?
Yes, the Shoshone Bannock Nation is not far from where I grew up.
It's the largest in Idaho.
Hmm, interesting. In Colorado we also have a lot of native lands.
Super interesting and important to kind of get to know the cultures and learn about it Yes, absolutely.
Really interesting.
I don't know, have you ever watched the show Yellowstone, Lindsay?
No, I missed that. It was really hot for a while, wasn't it?
Yeah, a lot of people really loved it.
I watched some of the first season with my parents, and I feel like there are a lot of Native American actors, a lot of Native American characters in that show.
And I thought it was interesting about getting into the current culture and the native lands and some of the politics and some tricky things about farmers who are trying to rent native lands and so that might be an interesting show to learn more about US culture.
Yeah, super interesting.
Or there was a really good movie that came out a few years ago.
It was a long movie but it was really good.
It had Leonardo Caprio in it.
I'm trying to think of what the name was.
Do you remember? Is the one where he's attacked by a bear?
No, no, no, no. It's much later than that.
It was just a few years ago.
That was a good one too.
I'm trying to... Oh yes, and it won like an Academy Award or the, what was that called?
I'm gonna look it up really quick because she I think was the first Native American to win Actress.
It's not win River.
That's a different movie, which was also really good.
By the way We will come up with that and we will add that to the show notes over the flower moon Moon and it was about the murders of the Osage Native Americans in the 1920s.
Yes. Yes. Yes Yes, yes really really good stuff good movie.
I highly recommend it.
Yeah, okay, let's go through this roleplay Okay.
All of these terms here and a bonus that we threw in.
I first said I want to be able to speak Spanish as well as a native speaker.
So I just mean someone who their first language is Spanish.
Yes. And then I said same.
I've been learning Spanish off and on for a long time.
But getting to that native speaker level is no joke.
That native speaker level.
Okay? Now where you are as fluent as someone who's first language is Spanish.
I love this expression no joke means like extremely difficult.
Yeah. I love it too.
I remember I had a friend who used to always refer to hiking specific mountains as no joke.
That mountain, is you're going to hike that this weekend?
That is no joke. That is perfect, right?
If it's extremely difficult, okay, it's no joke.
Take it seriously. Bring some shelter or something, you know?
Right. And then we have your bonus tier.
I said, you're a native of Boston, right?
This is another way we use native to ask someone where they're born and raised.
If you're, I'm a native of Idaho, right?
Southeast Idaho, that's where I was born and raised.
Yes, perfect. And then you said, I said, are there a lot of native lands in Idaho?
So now we're talking about Native American lands, right?
Yes, exactly. And if you hear someone use the term reservation means the same thing.
This is historically what was used, but hopefully this message will be getting out to help people know that the preferred term is native lands.
Yes, very good. and then the last one Aubrey, what did you say I said the Shoshone Bannock Nation is not far from where I grew up so this is the way we would now say it rather than the Shoshone Bannock reservation that's what I would have said as a teenager.
Instead we would say nation.
Alright, super interesting really important also because our listeners, our students, are using the term you know native speaker all the time and it is okay and we've shown you kind of how these overlap a little bit and gone into a really important topic about how to connect with communities.
Yes, and really helpful to know more about the culture in the U .S. and to know who you are referring if you say Native Americans.
Yes, really good topic.
Thanks for bringing this to the show, Aubrey.
Good stuff. Awesome, thanks.
See you next time. All right, talk to you soon.
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