The First Nations geographic location dataset contains the geographic location of First Nations (groups and subgroups) in Canada as points as well as basic attributes data. The location identifies where the First Nations live. Each First Nation point represents its administrative office address as it is registered in Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) Band Governance Management System (BGMS). When the First Nation administrative office is located outside its associated most populated reserve boundary, adjustments are made to relocate the point within its boundaries, otherwise within the boundaries of another associated reserve or the city where the administrative office is located. When the administrative office or the First Nation is impossible to locate, the location is based on the best available information on the First Nation (e.g. official First Nation Web site). A connection with the BGMS is in place to ensure that any update to the system is reflected in the attributes data associated with the location of each First Nation. This dataset is Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC) and Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) official source for First Nation geographic location on maps.

Indian reserve map (managed forest code 32) used in the Story Map of Forest Management in Canada, 2017.Indian Reserve lands were identified using the Geobase Aboriginal Lands of Canada geodatabase. The Indian Act defines these as federal Crown lands that have been “set apart by Her Majesty for the use and benefit of a band”.Source: This web map shows the Indian Reserve lands used in the map of forest management in Canada, 2017 and includes the following tiled layer:Indian Reserve (Managed Forest Code 32)Data provided by Alberta Agriculture and Forestry; British Columbia Ministry of Forests; Manitoba Sustainable Development; Natural Resources Canada; New Brunswick Department of Energy and Resource Development; Newfoundland & Labrador Department of Fisheries and Land Resources; Northwest Territories Department of Environment and Natural Resources; Nova Scotia Department of Lands and Forestry; Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry; Prince Edward Island Department of Communities, Land & Environment; Québec Ministère des Forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs; Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment; and Yukon Energy, Mines and Resources.

Tile layer of Indian reserve, managed forest code 32 used in the Story Map of Forest Management in Canada, 2017. Tile layer of Indian reserve, managed forest code 32 used in the Story Map of Forest Management in Canada, 2017. Indian Reserve lands were identified using the Geobase Aboriginal Lands of Canada geodatabase. The Indian Act defines these as federal Crown lands that have been “set apart by Her Majesty for the use and benefit of a band”. Data provided by Alberta Agriculture and Forestry; British Columbia Ministry of Forests; Manitoba Sustainable Development; Natural Resources Canada; New Brunswick Department of Energy and Resource Development; Newfoundland & Labrador Department of Fisheries and Land Resources; Northwest Territories Department of Environment and Natural Resources; Nova Scotia Department of Lands and Forestry; Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry; Prince Edward Island Department of Communities, Land & Environment; Québec Ministère des Forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs; Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment; and Yukon Energy, Mines and Resources.

Identifies First Nation Reserve boundaries defined by the Legal Surveys Division of Natural Resources Canada.Additional DocumentationFirst Nation Reserve - Data Description (PDF)First Nation Reserve - Documentation (Word)Aboriginal Lands of Canada Legislative Boundaries - Canada Open Government PortalStatusOn going: Data is continually being updatedMaintenance and Update FrequencyIrregular: Data is updated in intervals that are uneven in durationContactOffice of the Surveyor General,landtenuremapping@ontario.ca

This layer is a part of a larger Indigenous Issues Story Map resource called Turtle Island.The Aboriginal Land Type Layer was used to construct this map. Please note that this layer uses the term "Aboriginal" as its source is a Canadian Government web page that uses older terminology. This document provides information on appropriate terminology to use when discussing Indigenous Issues.

Contained within the 1st Edition (1906) of the Atlas of Canada is a map that shows the distribution of 11 aboriginal groups of Canada, Alaska and Greenland. The areas shown in different colours represent occupied land by the native linguistic families, including uninhabited large areas in the Arctic islands and Greenland. The southern portion of Canada, the Indians are living on reserves. The other points indicated are small reminants of the once powerful Huron-Iroquois at Jeune Lorette, two small bands of Iroquois near Edmonton and on the head waters of the Athabaska river. There are a greater number of linguistic families on the Pacific coast of British Columbia than in all the rest of Canada.

Indian Reserve map (managed forest code 32) used in the Forest Management in Canada, 2020 story map. Indian reserve map (managed forest code 32) with lands identified using Aboriginal Lands of Canada Legislative boundaries. The Indian reserve map is used in the Story Map of Forest Management in Canada, 2020 (Aménagement des forêts au Canada, 2020) and includes the following tiled layer: Tile Layer of Indian Reserve Managed Forest Code 32: 2020

The Indigenous Populations of Canada map is derived from the CanEcumene 2.0 Geodatabase using custom tabulations of census-based population data. Indigenous communities within the level of the census sub-division (CSD) were identified using a combination of sources from census field data (see Eddy et. al. 2020 for more details). This map shows the percent of Indigenous population in CanEcumene 2.0 communities using graduated symbols, overlaid upon a population density raster. The larger the symbol, the higher the percentage of Indigenous population in that area. The darker the colour in the underlying raster, the denser is the general population. This map illustrates how the majority of Indigenous populations reside in locations outside of the denser populated areas of Canada.

Identifies First Nation Reserve boundaries defined by the Legal Surveys Division of Natural Resources Canada.

Contained within the 5th Edition (1978 to 1995) of the National Atlas of Canada is plate with a series of maps. The first map that shows distribution of Indian and Inuit communities; most give status (for example, Indian Reserve), area, name, and linguistic family (eleven major families representing 51 languages). Inset for southwestern British Columbia. Summary charts of Indians by status, and of Indians and Inuit by linguistic family; 1976 data. Two smaller maps: one of native culture areas of Canada, the other showing native language families from the 16th to 18th centuries.

Contained within the Atlas of Canada's Reference Map Series, 1961 to 2010, is a map showing the extent of Indian and Inuit Communities in the Atlantic provinces. Indian Reserves are shown as being either inhabited or uninhabited (based on 1980 data), and are further classed by size: those under 809 hectares (2000 acres) are shown by a symbol, whereas larger ones have their boundaries shown (with data as of 1983). Occasionally, one symbol represents many nearby reserve; however, all reserves are named. The base map reflects 1973 data.

The Indigenous Populations of Canada map is derived from the CanEcumene 2.0 Geodatabase using custom tabulations of census-based population data. Indigenous communities within the level of the census sub-division (CSD) were identified using a combination of sources from census field data (see Eddy et. al. 2020 for more details). This map shows the percent of Indigenous population in CanEcumene 2.0 communities using graduated symbols, overlaid upon a population density raster. The larger the symbol, the higher the percentage of Indigenous population in that area. The darker the colour in the underlying raster, the denser is the general population. This map illustrates how the majority of Indigenous populations reside in locations outside of the denser populated areas of Canada.

Contained within the Atlas of Canada's Reference Map Series, 1961 to 2010, is a map showing the extent of Indian and Inuit Communities in British Columbia. Indian Reserves are shown as being either inhabited or uninhabited (based on 1980 data), and are further classed by size: those under 809 hectares (2000 acres) are shown by a symbol, whereas larger ones have their boundaries shown (with data as of 1983). Occasionally, one symbol represents many nearby reserve; however, all reserves are named. The base map reflects 1973 data.

Indian reserve map (managed forest code 32) used in the Story Map of Forest Management in Canada, 2017. Indian reserve map (managed forest code 32) used in the Story Map of Forest Management in Canada, 2017. Indian Reserve lands were identified using the Geobase Aboriginal Lands of Canada geodatabase. The Indian Act defines these as federal Crown lands that have been “set apart by Her Majesty for the use and benefit of a band”. Source: This web map shows the Indian Reserve lands used in the map of forest management in Canada, 2017 and includes the following tiled layer:Indian Reserve (Managed Forest Code 32)Data provided by Alberta Agriculture and Forestry; British Columbia Ministry of Forests; Manitoba Sustainable Development; Natural Resources Canada; New Brunswick Department of Energy and Resource Development; Newfoundland & Labrador Department of Fisheries and Land Resources; Northwest Territories Department of Environment and Natural Resources; Nova Scotia Department of Lands and Forestry; Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry; Prince Edward Island Department of Communities, Land & Environment; Québec Ministère des Forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs; Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment; and Yukon Energy, Mines and Resources.

The Aboriginal Lands data consists of polygon entities that depict the administrative boundaries (extent) of lands where the title has been vested in specific Aboriginal Groups of Canada or lands which were set aside for their exclusive benefit.

These include Indian Reserves, Land Claim Settlement Lands and Indian Land. Please note that this layer uses the term "Aboriginal" as its source is the Canadian Government web page.

Revised Location - The First Nations geographic location dataset contains the geographic location of First Nations (groups and subgroups) in Canada as points as well as basic attributes data. The location identifies where the First Nations live. Each First Nation point represents its administrative office address as it is registered in Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) Band Governance Management System (BGMS). When the First Nation administrative office is located outside its associated most populated reserve boundary, adjustments are made to relocate the point within its boundaries, otherwise within the boundaries of another associated reserve or the city where the administrative office is located. When the administrative office or the First Nation is impossible to locate, the location is based on the best available information on the First Nation (e.g. official First Nation Web site). A connection with the BGMS is in place to ensure that any update to the system is reflected in the attributes data associated with the location of each First Nation.

This dataset is Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) official source for First Nation geographic location on maps.

Contained within the Atlas of Canada's Reference Map Series, 1961 to 2010, is a map showing the extent of Indian and Inuit Communities in British Columbia. Indian Reserves are shown as being either inhabited or uninhabited (based on 1980 data), and are further classed by size: those under 809 hectares (2000 acres) are shown by a symbol, whereas larger ones have their boundaries shown (with data as of 1983). Occasionally, one symbol represents many nearby reserve; however, all reserves are named. The base map reflects 1973 data.

Contained within the Atlas of Canada's Reference Map Series, 1961 to 2010, is a map showing the extent of Indian and Inuit Communities in the Northwest Territories and Yukon Territory. Indian Reserves are shown as being either inhabited or uninhabited (based on 1980 data), and are further classed by size: those under 809 hectares (2000 acres) are shown by a symbol, whereas larger ones have their boundaries shown (with data as of 1983). Occasionally, one symbol represents many nearby reserve; however, all reserves are named. The base map reflects 1973 data.

Contained within the 4th Edition (1974) of the Atlas of Canada is a map that shows the locations of occupied Indian Reserves, settlements and other communities. For each of the locations plotted, the major linguistic groups for the communities are denoted as a percentage of the total number of registered Indians in Canada as of 1969 along with the names of the Bands participating in these linguistic groups. A small supplementary map image shows the extent of major linguistic groups throughout Canada.

The aboriginal lands data set depicts the administrative boundaries (exterior limits) of lands where the title has been vested in specific aboriginal groups of Canada or lands which were set aside for their exclusive benefit. The aboriginal lands data set includes, but is not limited to, Indian Reserves, Cree-Naskapi Category 1A and 1A-N Lands, Yukon First Nation Settlement Lands, Kanesatake Mohawk Interim Land Base, the Inuit Owned Lands, Tlicho Lands, Inuvialuit Lands, Gwich’in Lands, and Sahtu Lands.