METIS NA TION Of ONT ARIO Annu A l Repo R t 20122013 15 Gov E rn A nc E W H o are TH e m e TI s T he Metis ar e a distinct Aboriginal people with a unique histor y cultur e language and territor y that in cludes the water ways of Ontario surr ounds the Gr eat Lakes and spans what was known as the historic northwest The Metis Nation is comprised of descendants of people bor n of r elations between Indian women and Eur opean men The initial of fspring of these unions wer e of mixed ancestr y The genesis of a new Aboriginal people called the Metis r esulted fr om the subsequent intermarriage of these mixed ancestr y individuals Distinct Metis settlements emer ged as an outgr owth of the fur trade along fr eighting water ways and watersheds In Ontario these settlements wer e part of lar ger r egional Communities that wer e inter connected by the highly mobile lifestyle of the Metis the fur trade network seasonal r ounds extensive kinship connections and a shar ed histor y and identity Communities that wer e inter connected by the highly mobile lifestyle of the Metis the fur trade network seasonal r ounds extensive kinship connections and a shar ed history and identity