The Metis

In the early days of Canada, the early immigrants from France were primarily fur traders. They lived hard lives of isolation and travelled by canoes. For survival they soon befriended and worked with the aboriginal tribes and many married aboriginal women and had families. These communities became known as the Metis and many Canadians whose families have been here for mulitple generations claim at least one Metis or aboriginal relative. My mother's family is French Canadian and my grandmother's mother was a 'squaw' as my family used to say. Here is a fuller explaination of the Metis.