May 18th, 2013
..Warner, Oklahoma (within Cherokee Nation
jurisdiction)
We officially announce the release of the first-ever, newly-copy-written
Tribal Nations Map:
I grew up knowing about my Cherokee heritage. My maternal grandparents
are both mixed-blood Cherokees from Oklahoma. They would tell me,
You are part Native American, and you should know about it.
At 6 years old my grandpa gave me a Scholastic book called Custer
and Crazy Horse. Reading that book solidified in me an understanding
of the injustice that had happened to tribes in this country. It
was the start to the eventual path I was led on. I went from reading
Native books, to attending Powwows, to getting involved in local
tribal meetings and concerns, to joining the American Indian Movement
of Southern California. It also led to the creation of the Tribal
Nations Map.
As a young kid, I had always sought more knowledge about Native
history and cultures. I would attend Pow Wows and scour through
the items vendors had for sell. From time to time I would see maps
of the traditional territories of our tribes, but thought they looked
incomplete, and the names mostly inaccurate. I filed away the idea
of one day creating a more authentic-looking one myself. Years went
by as I looked from time to time for a better map. One day I decided,
"Its time to make a REAL map of Native America, as WE
see it." It started with four poster boards and a rough pencil
drawing of the United States. Over the next 14 years I would create
the Tribal Nations Map.
I spent countless thousands of hours poring through books, investigating
in library archive buildings, making phone calls and traveling to
remote reservations in the spirit of creating the most thorough
map of Native America in existence. I have many stories of
difficulties tracking down tribal members who could tell me their
tribes real name. Many of these told me that they were some
of the last speakers of their tribal language, or one of the only
ones who knew the translation of the name.
My intention for the Tribal Nations Map is for it to replace
existing maps that are lacking in substance. Many maps of tribes
in the United States only contain the names of 50 to 100 tribes,
and many times utilize the incorrect names imposed on them by outsiders.
My intention is also to instill pride in our Native American people,
especially the youth. I also want people to understand that this
entire country was covered with tribes. There is a myth that only
small sections of the United States were populated before the coming
of the Europeans. That is completely inaccurate. I have sold them
to universities, museums, tribal offices and individuals. I hope
to continue spreading them throughout Indian Country as well as
the dominant society, to educate people of our true history.
Once I completed the research for the map, I them decided to
use a free map-making software program called Inkscape . There I
uploaded an outline of the United States, and starting inputting
tribes one by one. I added historical pictures of Native Americans
from a variety of tribes, to show just how diverse our nations
style of dress and appearance are. I also added pictures of different
tribal dwellings. I then took this program to a graphic designer
in Flagstaff, Arizona Overdrive Media and Printing- and had
them help me with a background template, color and layout. We also
decided on a standard size for the map at 35 by 52 inches. Smaller
versions will soon be available, but because there are almost 600
names on the map, a larger size displays them better.
I published and copywrote my map independently through the US
Copyright Office. I was assured that it is the only map of its kind.
The concept of a map documenting every tribe, using Native tribal
names had not been copywritten up to this point.
THE CONCEPT OF THE TRIBAL NATIONS MAP
This map presents every documented, known Native American
tribe that was here in the United States in Pre-Columbian times in
approximately the year 1490. All of the tribal nations documented
here are in their original locations before the European Invasion
affected their movement and displacement. Most of the names of
tribes are in their own language, and are not the names given
to them either by the invading Europeans or even other tribes.
For example, we correctly use the name Numinu for what most Americans
would call the Comanche Nation. The Sioux are referred to here
in their own language as the Lakota. Unfortunately, many of the
tribes here are indeed listed by their given name. Their original
names were lost in the War against the Indians which left many
tribes numberless, or forced remnant bands to amalgamate
into larger, stronger tribes. We seek here to honor those hundreds
of tribal nations who existed in their respective territories
for millennia unscathed until the encroachment of Europeans. This
is a tribute to all of those forgotten tribes whose names had
been lost to the wind, but who live in the hearts and minds of
modern-day Native Americans who managed to survive the largest
full-scale holocaust in Man's history. We also honor the Indigenous
Nations of this land by giving them ownership of their own names
for themselves.
To purchase your own copy, or to see our website, please go
here :
https://aaron-carapella.squarespace.com/
Contact : Aaron Carapella (949) 415-4981 or 949-973-3673 (available
for interviews)
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