Aboriginal peoples refers to which three distinct groups?

According to the official Discover Canada study guide, the term Aboriginal peoples refers to three distinct groups: First Nations, Métis, and Inuit. The ancestors of Aboriginal peoples are believed to have migrated from Asia many thousands of years ago, and they were well established here long before explorers from Europe first came to North America. Diverse, vibrant First Nations cultures were rooted in religious beliefs about their relationship to the Creator, the natural environment and each other.

The term Indian historically referred to all Aboriginal people who are not Inuit or Métis, but in the 1970s, the term First Nations began to be used. Today, about half of First Nations people live on reserve land in about 600 communities, while the other half live off-reserve, mainly in urban centres. The Inuit, which means "the people" in the Inuktitut language, live in small, scattered communities across the Arctic, where their knowledge of the land, sea and wildlife enabled them to adapt to one of the harshest environments on earth.

The Métis are a distinct people of mixed Aboriginal and European ancestry, the majority of whom live in the Prairie provinces. They come from both French- and English-speaking backgrounds and speak their own dialect, Michif. According to Discover Canada, about 65% of the Aboriginal people are First Nations, while 30% are Métis and 4% Inuit. Aboriginal and treaty rights are entrenched in the Canadian Constitution, and territorial rights were first guaranteed through the Royal Proclamation of 1763 by King George III, which established the basis for negotiating treaties with the newcomers — treaties that were not always fully respected.

This question is foundational because the three groups appear directly in the Oath of Citizenship, which states that the Constitution "recognizes and affirms the Aboriginal and treaty rights of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples." New citizens swear loyalty to laws that explicitly protect these rights, so understanding who Aboriginal peoples are is part of the responsibility of citizenship. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms, entrenched in 1982, also guarantees that Charter rights will not adversely affect any treaty or other rights of Aboriginal peoples.

The topic also connects to Canada's three founding peoples — Aboriginal, French and British — and to the 2008 federal apology to former residential school students, recurring themes throughout the test.