what is indigenous

Indigenous refers to people or objects that are native to a certain region or environment. Indigenous peoples are the earliest known inhabitants of an area and their descendants, especially one that has been colonized by a now-dominant group of settlers. They are distinct social and cultural groups that share collective ancestral ties to the lands and natural resources where they live, occupy or from which they have been displaced. Indigenous peoples have retained distinct characteristics which are clearly different from those of other segments of the national populations. They hold invaluable knowledge of practices for the sustainable management of natural resources and have a special relation to and use of their traditional land. Their ancestral land has a fundamental importance for their collective physical and cultural survival as peoples. Indigenous peoples often have much in common with other neglected segments of societies, such as lack of political representation and participation, economic marginalization and poverty, lack of access to social services, and discrimination.