Aborigines
Also called: Aboriginal Australians · Topic: Settler Colonialism: Native Peoples of America and Australia · NCERT: Class 11, Ch 6 "Displacing Indigenous Peoples"
Meaning
"Aborigines" is a general name for the many different native societies of Australia. The word comes from the Latin ab origine, which means "from the beginning". Their ancestors came from New Guinea over 40,000 years ago, and possibly earlier, when a land-bridge joined the two lands. In their own traditions, though, they did not come from anywhere: they had always been in Australia.
Example
In the late eighteenth century there were 350 to 750 native communities, and each had its own language. About 200 of these languages are still spoken. During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, nearly 90 per cent of the natives died from new germs, the loss of their land and resources, and battles with settlers.
Don't confuse with
- Torres Strait Islanders: they are a separate native group from northern Australia. They are not called Aborigines because they are believed to have come from elsewhere and to belong to a different race.