autochthonous

[aw-tok-thuh-nuh s]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR autochthonous ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

pertaining to autochthons; aboriginal; indigenous (opposed to heterochthonous).

Pathology.

found in the part of the body in which it originates, as a cancerous lesion.
found in a locality in which it originates, as an infectious disease.

Psychology. of or relating to ideas that arise independently of the individual's own train of thought and seem instead to have some alien or external agency as their source.

Geology. (of rocks, minerals, etc.) formed in the region where found.Compare allochthonous.

RELATED WORDS

aboriginal, endemic, native

Nearby words

Also au·toch·tho·nal, au·toch·thon·ic

[aw-tok-thon-ik] /ˌɔ tɒkˈθɒn ɪk/.

Origin of autochthonous

First recorded in 1795–1805; autochthon + -ous

Related formsau·toch·tho·nism, au·toch·tho·ny, nounau·toch·tho·nous·ly, adverbau·toch·tho·nous·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for autochthonous

Are not the speakers of Celtic languages the descendants of the autochthonous peoples of Western Europe?
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 14, Slice 4|Various
Apparently from mother earth herself they had come, autochthonous.
Where the Trail Divides|Will Lillibridge
Sometimes the cultural change was an autochthonous development.
A Book-Lover's Holidays in the Open|Theodore Roosevelt
The Egyptians, however, like the ancient Greeks, regarded themselves as autochthonous.
The World's Progress, Vol. I (of X)|Various

It is not probable that the Eupatrid families were all autochthonous, even in the loose sense of that term.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 8|Various

British Dictionary definitions for autochthonous

autochthonous

autochthonic (ˌɔːtɒkˈθɒnɪk) or autochthonal

adjective

(of rocks, deposits, etc) found where they and their constituents were formedCompare allochthonous

inhabiting a place or region from earliest known times; aboriginal

physiol (of some functions, such as heartbeat) originating within an organ rather than from external stimulation

Derived Formsautochthonism or autochthony, nounautochthonously, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for autochthonous

autochthonous

adj.

"native, indigenous," 1845, from autochthon + -ous.

Medicine definitions for autochthonous

autochthonous

[ô-tŏk′thə-nəs]

adj.

Native to the place inhabited; indigenous.

Originating in the place where found. Used of a disease originating in the part of the body where found, or of a disease acquired in the place where the patient is.