The origins of the term Indian to refer to people from North America: Did the term "Indian" really come from a mis-label from early European settlers in America? written by u/DerProfessor

Persistence of term 'Indian':Why is it that the term 'Indians' is still used and common throughout American history since colonization, despite the awareness of early pilgrims knowing that they were not in India? written by u/Snapshot52

In addition to the links that /u/Holy_Shit_HeckHounds has provided, this link is a somewhat more updated version of an answer to that question -- it was last revised earlier this year, whereas /u/Snapshot52's answer below is about five years old.