The term 'Aborigine' was commonly used up until about the 1960s but is now generally regarded as outdated and inappropriate. This is in part because 'Aborigine' is a noun, while 'Aboriginal' is an adjective sometimes employed as a noun.
And if you are talking about both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, it's best to say either 'Indigenous Australians' or 'Indigenous people'. Without a capital “a”, “aboriginal” can refer to an Indigenous person from anywhere in the world.
An Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander is a person of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent who identifies as an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander and is accepted as such by the community in which he (she) lives.
The preference is to use 'First Nations people', 'Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people(s)', or 'Indigenous Australians'. Choose one and stay consistent, including in data tables and graphs. Use capital letters, it's a noun – First Nations, Aboriginal Australian, Indigenous Australian, Torres Strait Islander.
There is no one Aboriginal word that all Aborigines use for Australia; however, today they call Australia, ""Australia"" because that is what it is called today. There are more than 250 aboriginal tribes in Australia. Most of them didn't have a word for ""Australia""; they just named places around them.
"Indigenous peoples" is a collective name for the original peoples of North America and their descendants. Often, "Aboriginal peoples" is also used. The Canadian Constitution recognizes 3 groups of Aboriginal peoples: Indians (more commonly referred to as First Nations), Inuit and Métis.
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federation of six states and two self-governing territories. The national government is the Australian Government, also referred to as the federal government or Commonwealth government.
Aboriginal Peoples moved into popularity as the correct collective noun for First Nations, Inuit and Métis and was widely adopted by government and many national groups. This distinction was made legal in 1982 when the Constitution Act came into being.
There are many different ways in which Indigenous individuals prefer to be addressed - some use only their ancestral name, or their traditional name, or they use both ancestral and traditional names. Tip: When addressing an Indigenous leader it is common to use their title, first name, and last name.
Use the singular Indigenous people to refer to a specific ethnic community or individual persons from multiple Indigenous groups. Use the plural Indigenous peoples when referring to multiple distinct groups.
Your Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander heritage is something that is personal to you. You do not need a letter of confirmation to identify as an Indigenous person.
Aboriginal people refer to an Elder as 'Aunty' or 'Uncle'. However, it is recommended that non-Aboriginal people check the appropriateness of their use of these terms as referring to an Elder or leader as Aunty or Uncle may not be appropriate for an outsider unless a strong relationship has been established.
'What percentage Aboriginal are you?'
"Your connection to the land and your community is part of your identity no matter what.” So if you wish to be more respectful and understanding of Aboriginal culture, don't bother asking that question. It simply doesn't matter.
"Aborigine"
The media, which is sometimes still using this term, has been called on to abandon it because its use has "negative effects on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples' self-esteem and mental health". Many First Nations people consider the use of the term 'Aborigine' racist.
'Indigenous' may be considered by some to be the most inclusive term of all, since it identifies peoples in similar circumstances without respect to national boundaries or local conventions, but it is, for some, a contentious term, since it defines groups primarily in relation to their colonizers.
Aboriginal Australians are the various indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, but excluding the ethnically distinct people of the Torres Strait Islands. The term "Indigenous Australians" is applied to Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders collectively.
Indigenous Australian peoples are people of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent, who identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander and are accepted as an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person in the community in which they live, or have lived.
First Nations and First Peoples
Other pluralised terms such as 'First Nations' or 'First Peoples' are also acceptable language, and respectfully encompass the diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and identities.
Some common synonyms of aboriginal are endemic, indigenous, and native.
Some common synonyms of native are aboriginal, endemic, and indigenous. While all these words mean "belonging to a locality," native implies birth or origin in a place or region and may suggest compatibility with it. When can aboriginal be used instead of native?
Colloquial names for Australia include "Oz" and "the Land Down Under" (usually shortened to just "Down Under"). Other epithets include "the Great Southern Land", "the Lucky Country", "the Sunburnt Country", and "the Wide Brown Land".
When Aus or Aussie, the short form for an Australian, is pronounced for fun with a hissing sound at the end, it sounds as though the word being pronounced has the spelling Oz. Hence Australia in informal language is referred to as Oz.
Colloquial names for Australia include “Oz” and “the Land Down Under” (usually shortened to just “Down Under”). Other epithets include “the Great Southern Land”, “the Lucky Country”, “the Sunburnt Country”, and “the Wide Brown Land”.