aboriginal — ODE

aboriginal /ˌabəˈrɪdʒɪnl

▸ adjective

1 (Aboriginal) relating to the Indigenous peoples of Australia or their languages:

she's been working with Aboriginal people for the past 40 years

Aboriginal communities

Aboriginal land rights.

2 inhabiting or existing in a land from the earliest times or from before the arrival of colonists; indigenous:

the aboriginal populations in Southeast Asia.

▸ noun

1 (Aboriginal) a person belonging to one of the Indigenous peoples of Australia.

2 an aboriginal inhabitant of a place.

With reference to the Indigenous peoples of Australia, formulations using the adjective Aboriginal, such as Aboriginal person or Aboriginal Australian, are now preferred to Aboriginal as a noun or Aborigine, which are avoided.

– ORIGIN mid 17th century: from Latin aborigines ‘original inhabitants’ (see aborigine) + -al.