Métis

From Freepedia

For the Métis Nation of Canada, see Métis people (Canada).

A métis is a person born to parents who belong to different groups defined by visible physical differences, predominately racial. The term is French, and also is a cognate of mestizo in Spanish. In the Western Hemisphere, this term usually is used to describe someone born or descended from the union of a European and an Aboriginal. However, the term has been used by other groups around the world, mostly in countries which were under French influence such as Vietnam and is still commonly used by Francophones today.

In Canada, the term usually designates a constitutionally recognized individual born of an ethnic group descended from the marriages of English, Scottish, and French men and Cree, Saulteaux and Ojibwa women in Manitoba starting in the late 18th century. Their constitutional rights are represented by the Métis National Council. The MNC voices issues (mainly of self-government) directly to the Government of Canada and internationally.