noun
- People who are native to or originate from a particular place; indigenous inhabitants.
Usage: Plural of autochthon; Formal or academic usage; Often used in anthropology and history
Examples
- The autochthones of Australia developed a rich culture over thousands of years.
- Historians study the autochthones of the Americas before European contact.
- The autochthones of the island maintained their traditions despite outside influence.
- Archaeological evidence reveals much about the autochthones who first inhabited this region.
- The rights of autochthones to their ancestral lands remain an important global issue.
- Many autochthones were displaced when colonizers arrived in the 16th century.