Not An April Fool's Post - Native Americans

The referral of Native people as Indians is not from the theory that Christopher Columbus thought he was in India. When Columbus set sail in 1492, the country that is known today as India was called Hindustan. He wrote that the people he had met in the "New World" were "una gente en dio"; meaning "a people in with God". The term "en dio" somehow got changed to Indian, thus the common belief held that Columbus called the Native people "Indians" because he thought he was in India.



(Source: www.lareina-persians.net/native.html - NOTE: This source has disappeared!!!)

Another explanation -

"Q: Why do you prefer the term American Indian over Native American?

A: The word “Indian” is an English bastardization of a Spanish bastardization. Columbus wrote “una gente en dio” – “a people in with God.” He went on to write that they are so peaceful and generous as it to be a fault. Therefore they’d make excellent slaves. The Spaniards started calling them “indio.” That stuck. This is 100 years before the English conquered the sub-continent they called India. We were the first with that name. Then the English bastardized the Spanish to “Indian.” "

(Source: http://www.russellmeansfreedom.com/2010/means-spirited-american-indian-actor-and-activist-honored-at-haskell-film-festival/ )

(Source for picture - "Le Costume Ancien Et Moderne" - Art.com - http://www.art.com/asp/sp-asp/_/pd--12059004/sp-- )

Your friendly neighborhood trivia buff. ;-) GC

PS - This explanation sounds good but just maybe apocryphal*.

(* Click on following link for definiton -http://www.thefreedictionary.com/apocryphal )