Indigenous
People who originate in a given place through ancestry. Most applicable when displaced or destroyed.
How We Say It
inΒ·dijΒ·ΙΒ·nΙs
Where It Comes From
Latin indigena β native, from indi- (within) + gena (born, from gignere β to beget). Literally: born within. Used in English since the 17th century to mean native to a place.
How It's Been Used
In biology: species native to an ecosystem. In politics and law: peoples who inhabited a territory before colonial conquest and maintain distinct cultures, languages, and relationships to land. The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (2007) gives the term legal weight. In the United States, 'Indigenous' and 'Native American' are both used, with preference varying by community. The word carries legal implications for land rights, resource rights, and sovereignty that 'native' does not.