aboriginal
/ˌæb.əˈrɪdʒ.ən.əl/ (bre, ipa) · /ˌæb.əˈrɪdʒ.ən.əl/ (ame, ipa) · /ˌa-bə-ˈri-jə-nᵊl -ˈrij-nəl/ (ame, mw) · /ˌæbəˈrɪdʒənl/ (bre, ipa) · /ˌæbəˈrɪdʒənl/ (ame, ipa)
aboriginal — 名詞
1. someone whose ancestors lived in a country long before settlers from other lands
原住民
在殖民者到來前已居住該地的人
someone whose ancestors lived in a country long before settlers from other lands came and took control of it.
The museum in Sydney has a quiet room where Aboriginals tell stories about their ancestors.
雪梨的這座博物館有一個安靜的房間，原住民會在裡面講述祖先的故事。
capitalised when referring to Australian indigenous peoples
Many Aboriginals in Taiwan still speak languages that older Mandarin teachers do not understand.
台灣許多原住民仍然使用年長的國語老師聽不懂的語言。
The new law promises to return some forest land to the Aboriginals of the northern islands.
新的法律承諾將部分森林土地歸還給北方島嶼的原住民。
Dr. Harper spent twelve years studying the songs of the Aboriginals living near the desert.
哈伯博士花了十二年研究住在沙漠附近原住民的歌謠。
- indigenous person
more neutral and currently preferred in formal writing
- native
older and broader; can sound dated or offensive in some contexts
- first peoples
respectful collective term, common in Canada
用法筆記
Today many speakers prefer 'Aboriginal people' or 'Aboriginal person' over the bare noun, because the noun form can sound dated or impersonal. When referring to Australia specifically, the word is usually capitalised.
常見錯誤
aboriginal — 形容詞
1. describing the people, languages, customs, or art that belong to those who were
原住民的
屬於最早居住者及其文化的
describing the people, languages, customs, or art that belong to those who were already living somewhere long before Europeans or other settlers came.
The gallery in Melbourne is showing Aboriginal paintings made from red and yellow earth.
墨爾本的這間畫廊正在展出用紅土和黃土繪成的原住民畫作。
common collocation: Aboriginal art / paintings
Anaya is learning an Aboriginal language that only thirty elders still speak fluently.
瑪雅正在學一種只剩三十位長老還能流利使用的原住民語言。
common collocation: Aboriginal language
The school invited an Aboriginal elder to teach the children old hunting songs.
學校邀請了一位原住民長老來教孩子們古老的狩獵歌謠。
Ranger Tom led the tourists past several Aboriginal rock carvings hidden in the cliff.
湯姆巡守員帶遊客經過幾處藏在懸崖中的原住民石刻。
The new park protects sacred Aboriginal sites along the river bank.
這座新公園保護了河岸邊神聖的原住民遺址。
- indigenous
broader and more current; preferred in journalism
- native
older usage; can be ambiguous or sound disrespectful
- first-nation
common in Canadian English for indigenous communities
文法句型
Aboriginal + noun (people, art, language, community)
用法筆記
Almost always capitalised when describing the indigenous peoples of Australia, who use it as a self-identifying term. With other groups, 'indigenous' is now more common in news writing and academic prose.
常見錯誤
2. describing a plant, animal, or thing that has lived or existed in a place since
原生的
自最早期就存在於某地的動植物或事物
describing a plant, animal, or thing that has lived or existed in a place since the very earliest period anyone knows about, with no earlier kind on record.
The dense forest still holds aboriginal ferns that grew here long before any farmers cleared the land.
這座茂密的森林仍保有原生蕨類，它們早在農夫開墾土地前就生長於此。
formal register: aboriginal + plant/animal name
Scientists believe the small brown lizard is an aboriginal species of the volcanic island.
科學家認為這種棕色小蜥蜴是這座火山島的原生物種。
collocation: aboriginal species
Only a few aboriginal trees survived after farmers planted new orchards across the valley.
農夫在山谷各處種下新果園後，只剩下少數原生樹木存活下來。
The old swamp shelters aboriginal frogs whose calls have not changed for thousands of years.
這片古老的沼澤庇護著原生青蛙，牠們的叫聲幾千年來從未改變。
- indigenous
the everyday choice for native plants and animals
- native
shorter and more natural in conversation
- primeval
stresses very ancient, untouched nature
- introduced
brought into a place by humans from elsewhere
- non-native
neutral term for species not originally from a place
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 1: this sense applies to plants, animals, or natural features rather than to peoples or cultures. In modern writing, 'native' or 'indigenous' is far more common; 'aboriginal' here sounds scientific or literary.