aboriginal

American  

[ab-uh-rij-uh-nl] / ˌæb əˈrɪdʒ ə nl /

adjective

1. Sometimes Aboriginal. relating to or typical of the original or earliest known inhabitants of a region, or their descendants: aboriginal customs.

   the aboriginal people of Tahiti;

   aboriginal customs.

2. Aboriginal. relating to or being a member of any of the peoples who are the earliest known inhabitants of Australia, or one of their descendants.

   an Aboriginal tribe of Tasmania.

3. originating in and characteristic of a particular region or country; native; indigenous.

   aboriginal mammals of the Arctic.

   Synonyms:

   autochthonous, endemic

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noun

1. Sometimes Aboriginal Aborigine.

2. Often Offensive. Aboriginal. Aborigine.

Aboriginal ¹ British  

/ ˌæbəˈrɪdʒɪnəl /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of the indigenous peoples of Australia

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noun

1. another word for an Australian Aborigine

aboriginal ² British  

/ ˌæbəˈrɪdʒɪnəl /

adjective

1. existing in a place from the earliest known period; indigenous; autochthonous

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Usage

See Aborigine.

The Australian government suggests that the most exact and inclusive way of referring to the indigenous peoples of Australia is Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples . Other terms which are acceptable are: Aboriginal people(s) , Australian Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders

Other Word Forms

• aboriginality noun
• aboriginally adverb

Etymology

Origin of aboriginal

First recorded in 1660–70; Aborigine + -al ¹

Explanation

The native, indigenous people of a country are often called aboriginals. In Canada, the First Nations — Inuits and Métis — would be considered aboriginals. The adjective form of aboriginal is used to describe anything related to the people native to an area. You may visit a museum that has an exhibit of aboriginal art; or, if you're a linguist, you may study aboriginal languages. The adjective can also be used to describe something that is indigenous to a place and existed there from the beginning, such as "an aboriginal forest" that consists of old, old trees.

Example Sentences

There are several ongoing aboriginal title claims in British Columbia, and the Cowichan decision could affect private-property owners in those regions as well.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 21, 2025

That court case took 25 years and affirmed Tsilhqot’in’s aboriginal title and control of 733 square miles of their ancestral lands in central B.C., a precedent that stands as a landmark around the world.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 29, 2024

Similar to the Coquille, the Karuk went decades without a reservation, even after the U.S. government took ownership of the tribe’s aboriginal hunting and fishing land in a forested swath of the Klamath River Basin.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2024

“The DNA study also provides the Blood Tribe/Kainai with a new line of evidence to help further treaty and aboriginal rights,” the study authors wrote to Science in a collaborative statement.

From Science Magazine • Apr. 3, 2024

Only on the remote Andaman Islands do languages unrelated to the South Chinese language families persist—the last linguistic survivors of what must have been hundreds of now extinct aboriginal Southeast Asian languages.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

Related Words

• earliest
• original