Hi Manni,
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000.
aborigine
SYLLABICATION: ab·o·rig·i·ne
PRONUNCIATION: b-rj-n
NOUN: 1a. A member of the indigenous or earliest known population of a region; a native. b. often Aborigine A member of any of the indigenous peoples of Australia. See Usage Note at native. 2. aborigines The flora and fauna native to a geographic area.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin aborgins, original inhabitants (folk etymology of a pre-Roman tribal name) : ab-, from; see ab–1 + orgine, ablative of org, beginning; see origin.
aborigine - 1858, mistaken singular of aborigines (1547, the correct singular is aboriginal), from L. Aborigines „the first inhabitants“ (especially of Latium), possibly a tribal name, or from ab origine „from the beginning.“
Australian Aborigine
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Australian Aborigines are the indigenous peoples of Australia. They are believed to have arrived in Australia between 40,000 and 100,000 years ago.
At the time of contact with Europeans in the eighteenth century, Aboriginal groups were hunter-gatherers whose spiritual beliefs were (and for many, still are) based upon reverence for the land and a belief in the ‚Dreamtime‘ or Tjukurrpa. The Tjukurrpa is at once the ancient time of creation and the present day reality of dreaming. See Aborigine mythology.
It should be noted that there were many different Aboriginal groups, with their own languages, cultures and beliefs which overlapped to a greater or lesser extent, and evolved over time. For instance, there is evidence that a society based around freshwater aquaculture existed in some places, that disappeared well before the arrival of Europeans.
The Aboriginal population was decimated following British colonization in 1788. A combination of disease and murder during the 19th century colonization. Smallpox, venereal disease, influenza and measles spread in waves throughout the 19th century.
A wave of massacres and resistance followed the frontier. The last massacre was at Coniston, Northern Territory in 1922. Poisoning of food and water was not uncommon. In 1981, 12 Pintubi people were poisoned by a bottle of port wine laced with strychnine.
The number of violent deaths at the hands of whites is the subject of considerable, vigorous, and politically-loaded debate, with figures such as the Prime Minister John Howard rejecting what he terms „the black-armband“ view of Australian history. Figures of around 10,000 have been advanced by historians such as Henry Reynolds. Historian Keith Windschuttle claims such numbers are not backed up by documentary evidence, finding evidence existing only for a much, much smaller number. Reynolds attacks Windschuttle’s interpretation of the existing evidence, points out that documented proof that Windschuttle requires is unlikely to be available, and questions Windschuttle’s rejection of other forms of evidence such as oral history.
During the first half of the 20th century, native welfare boards were established in the various states. These instituted a policy of separating children from their parents based upon racial stereotyping. Pale-skinned children were forcibly removed, and Aboriginal parents often darkened up their children to keep them. This aspect of Aboriginal history is also open to considerable debate. See Stolen Generation.
Aboriginal people have succeeded in Australian life through excelling at sport, especially Australian Rules football. Doug Nicholls, the first Aboriginal governor of an Australian state, was a Yorta Yorta man who played for Footscray.
Well known Aboriginal people are Mandawuy Yunupingu from the rock band Yothu Yindi; Cathy Freeman, Olympic athlete; Ernie Dingo, an actor and television presenter; and Michael Long, Essendon footballer who challenged the racism in football.
Many Aborigines now live in towns and cities around Australia, but a substantial number live in settlements (often located on the site of former church missions) in what are often remote areas of rural Australia. The health and economic difficulties facing both groups are substantial (for instance, life expectancy of Aboriginal people is often 20 years shorter than the wider Australian population) and the root causes and solutions have been, again, contentious politicial issues.
See also: List of Australian Aborigine tribes
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