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aborigine

aborigine

4 8.6
A person from the first people living in a place before others arrived
  • noun
  • /ˌæbəˈrɪdʒəni/
translation icon : aborigen
  • The rights of the aborigine peoples have often been the focus of national discussions in Australia.
  • aborigine mother
  • Aborigine villages
  • Aborigine identity

It's the same time that there were The Cave paintings, right, Famous cave paintings in France, but they're all over the world, Aborigines, etcetera.

Examples

  • Many traditions among the aborigines revolve around the natural environment and storytelling.

  • Well, this aborigine here claims there were five little minks.

  • The first person to land on the island was an aborigine named Awaba Kelly.

  • The first inhabitants in Matilda Valley were aborigines who ...

    Academic text (1990)
  • Meet anthropologist Robert Lawlor, who talks about the aborigines' concept of land and story.

    Academic text (2009)
  • We might think of education in terms of the Australian aborigines' concepts of the dreamtime and songlines.

    Academic text (1995)
  • The Australian aborigine has a rich cultural heritage that dates back thousands of years.

Synonyms

native
vsaborigine
84 3.7

A person from the original people of a place, not later settlers

emphasizes original inhabitants before settlement by others
aboriginal
vsaborigine
2 7.6

A member of the first people who lived in a region

is the same meaning but appears as a noun or adjective form
Aborigine
vsaborigine
  • Archaic
2 8.4

A person from the first people of Australia who lived there before Europeans arrived

is a general term for original inhabitants of any place not limited to Australia
indigene
vsaborigine
1 9.4

A person native to a place where their family lived for many generations

relates specifically to original inhabitants before outside settlement

Compounds

A member of Australia's first people who lived there before Europeans arrived

Surface Forms

aborigine singular
aborigines plural

Etymology

The word aborigine comes from Latin words meaning 'from the beginning'; it contains ab- ('from') and orig- as in origin ('beginning'). So an aborigine is someone who was there at the start of a place, the original inhabitant.