What is Native American Heritage Month?
November is Native American Heritage Month, a time the whole country sets aside to honor the first peoples of this land and the Native nations who are still here.The idea started with Native advocates over a century ago. In 1990 the President approved a resolution naming November for it, and a proclamation has been issued every year since 1994. The best way to mark it: learn about the nations near you, from them.
1 · MindWhere it comes from
The idea is older than most people think. In the early 1900s, Dr. Arthur C. Parker, a Seneca man who directed the Museum of Arts and Science in Rochester, New York, pushed for a day to honor American Indians. Red Fox James, described on the federal heritage-month site as a Blackfoot man, rode horseback from state to state gathering support and brought the endorsements to the White House. New York declared the first state American Indian Day in May 1916.
The national month came much later. In 1990, President George H. W. Bush approved a joint resolution of Congress naming November 1990 a national heritage month for American Indians. Presidents have issued similar proclamations, under slightly different names, every year since 1994. A 2009 law also names the Friday after Thanksgiving as Native American Heritage Day.
The month is about the present, not only history. There are 575 federally recognized tribes in the United States, each with its own government, languages and traditions, and some states also recognize tribes that the federal government doesn’t. Each tribe decides for itself who its citizens are. Native people live in cities and suburbs as well as on reservations and tribal lands. All are American citizens, and many are citizens of their own nations too.
The Library of Congress, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Archives, the Smithsonian and other federal partners run a shared site for the month, with exhibits, recordings and teaching materials. In northern Arizona, that conversation is local: the Navajo Nation and the Hopi Tribe are neighbors.
What each tradition or community says
Guidance written for people who report on Native communities warns against treating Native people as history, mascots or something mystical. The nations, languages and families are here all year, not only in November or in history books.
There is no single Native culture. A Diné family in Arizona and a Seneca family in New York have different languages, histories, ceremonies and foods. Learning about one specific nation tends to teach more than learning about ‘Native Americans’ in general.
Schools often use November for lessons. The federal partners’ site offers teaching materials. When a tribe, tribal college or tribal museum publishes its own, students get to hear a nation describe itself.
2 · HeartWhat it feels like
For many Americans, what they learned about Native people in school stopped in the 1800s. Heritage Month is a chance to notice that the story didn’t stop: the families, nations and languages are still here, often just a short drive away.
You don’t need to get everything right to start. Curiosity with good manners goes a long way.
Heritage Month isn’t a museum visit. The neighbors it honors are still here, and most of them live closer than you’d think.Neighbor Radio
3 · HandsHow to be a good neighbor
Learn whose land you live on and which nations are near you, then read what those nations say about themselves on their own websites. Tribal governments, museums and tribal colleges are good places to start.
If there’s a public event, like a powwow, a market or a talk, go and be a good guest. Some ceremonies are private, and some communities ask visitors not to photograph or record. Follow the posted rules.
Skip “Native” costumes and feather headdresses, even at a party. A war bonnet is a sacred item that some Plains nations’ leaders earned feather by feather.
Buy from Native artists directly when you can. The Indian Arts and Crafts Act makes it illegal to sell work in a way that falsely suggests it was made by a Native person or tribe, so ask who made it.
This weekName one Native nation near where you live. If you can’t yet, find out this week, and read one page they wrote about themselves.
Plain wordsWhat do these words mean?
- Reservation
- Land set aside for a Native American tribe, where the tribe has its own government.
- Powwow
- A Native American gathering of dance, song, drum and community. Many are open to visitors.
Four questions to take with you
From the story of the Good Samaritan, the stranger who stopped to help. We call it the Good Neighbor Test.
- Did they see? Or look right past?
- Did they stop? Even when it was inconvenient?
- Did it cost them? Time, money, comfort, reputation?
- Did they treat the person like a person? Not like a label?
Try it on: a neighbor whose family has lived here longer than anyone’s. What would you want to ask them, and what would you want to just listen to?
Quick questions
Is it Native American Heritage Month or American Indian Heritage Month?
Both names have been used in official proclamations. For people, the advice from Native journalists is to be specific: use a person’s own nation, like Diné, Hopi or Seneca, and ask how they’d like to be described.
Can non-Native people take part?
Yes. The month is for everyone to learn. Join events that are open to the public, listen more than you speak, and follow each community’s rules about photos and ceremonies.
Why November?
The 1990 resolution named November, and the yearly proclamations since 1994 have kept it.
- National Native American Heritage Month: About (Library of Congress and federal partners)
- Federal Register: Indian Entities Recognized by and Eligible to Receive Services From the Bureau of Indian Affairs (2026)
- U.S. Department of the Interior: The Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990
- U.S. Department of the Interior: Tribal Enrollment Process
- Native Nations Institute, University of Arizona: State Recognition of American Indian Tribes
- Public Law 111-33: Native American Heritage Day Act of 2009
- IJNet: Tips for non-Native journalists covering Indigenous communities
Fact-checked October 15, 2026 against Library of Congress / nativeamericanheritagemonth.gov, Federal Register (BIA list of tribes), U.S. Department of the Interior and Native Nations Institute. Written in plain words by the Neighbor Radio team. Every fact is checked against what each community says about itself, in its own official sources, plus a neutral reference. Part of this community and something doesn't sound like you, or spot a mistake? Tell us. We read every note and fix mistakes.
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