aborigine
pronunciation
How to pronounce aborigine in British English:
UK [ˌæbəˈrɪdʒəni]
How to pronounce aborigine in American English:
US [ˌæbəˈrɪdʒəni]
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- Noun:
- the earliest known inhabitants of a region
Word Origin
- aborigine (n.)
- 1858, mistaken singular of aborigines (1540s; the correct singular is aboriginal), from Latin Aborigines "the first ancestors of the Romans; the first inhabitants" (especially of Latium), possibly a tribal name, or from or made to conform to ab origine, literally "from the beginning." Extended 1789 to natives of other countries which Europeans have colonized. Australian slang shortening Abo attested from 1922.
Example
- 1. Dr. willerslev and his colleagues needed dna from an australian aborigine who wouldn 't have carried genes from european settlers .
- 2. He has since added another first : first aborigine to run for the leadership of a national canadian political party .
- 3. In aborigine culture -- the oldest continuous culture in the world , according to experts -- rock art serves as the only written record of past events .
- 4. The undated painting was found during an fall 2008 expedition at djulirri in the aborigine territory of arnhem land in northern australia .
- 5. Dr. willerslev found the dna he needed in a 100-year-old hair sample from an aborigine who lived in a relatively remote area of southwest australia .