The term "Aboriginal" is appropriate when referring to matters that affect First Nations (Indian) and Métis peoples. The word is most appropriately used as an adjective (e.g., Aboriginal person).
Descendants of the original inhabitants of the North American continent, which include land based, non land-based, status, non-status, Inuit and Metis people.
adj. being one of the original inhabitants of a region
a dark-skinned member of a race of people living in Australia when Europeans arrived
being or composed of people inhabiting a region from the beginning; "native Americans"; "the aboriginal peoples of Australia"
Indigenous person of Australia ETD - Aboriginal Education and Training Directorate
A term used to describe descendants of the original people who inhabited North, South and Central America prior to European conquest and to describe original people in Australia and New Zealand. In the North American context, the term is used interchangeably with "Native Canadian" or "Native American," and is considered more acceptable than the term "Indian". In Canada, this term refers to status Indians, non status Indians, Inuit and Metis. Recommended usage is to refer to a particular people by its name: "Navajo", "Ojibwa", etc.
being the first of its kind in a region; see native person
Refers to those persons who reported identifying with at least one Aboriginal group, i.e. North American Indian, Métis or Inuit (Eskimo), or those who reported being a Treaty Indian or a Registered Indian as defined by the Indian Act of Canada or who were members of an Indian Band or First Nation.
Relating to a group of people indigenous to a geographic region; the original inhabitants of a region.
The first of a kind or the original people present in a region as contrasted with an invading or colonizing people.
adj. Primitive; unsophisticated.
"Aboriginal" in the context of this plan includes all Indian, Inuit, and Metis peoples of Canada (Constitution Act, 1982, Subsection 35(2)).
A term referring to descendants of the original inhabitants of Canada. This includes Inuit, Métis, and people of the First Nations communities.