Aborigines are native inhabitants of a certain locality

This term refers to the category of the well-known. It is actively used in scientific circulation, and in colloquial vocabulary. Meanwhile, not everyone has a clear idea of his original origin and semantic nuances. Therefore, there is reason to think about the question: Aborigines - who is it? And how do they differ from other population groups?

From the history of civilization

The population of territories and continents has never been stable. For centuries, there have been processes of moving significant ethnic groups to new habitats. This process is due to a number of economic and political reasons. People fled from hunger, wars and epidemics, or simply sought new habitats that were favorably distinguished by the climate and the possibility of improving their well-being. And on the way of settlers almost always met the so-called "aborigines". These are those who already lived earlier in the territory. Relations with them developed in different ways. Sometimes they were quite peaceful. But in the period of the colonial division of the world, from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century, these relations often acquired the character of an armed conflict. For the colonialists, the aborigines are, above all, those who prevented them from seizing new lands.

From the history of the term

The very name of indigenous peoples is rather ancient, the word was used even before the Christian civilization. This term, like much in scientific and professional vocabulary, is of Latin origin. Aborigines are those who already lived in those territories before they were taken under their control by legions from the "capital of the world". The Roman Empire has long been gone, but the term has survived for a long time and is widely used. It can be heard both in modern political practice and in scientific circulation. Often it is used in a variety of portable meanings. Has this word and synonyms. Aborigines are the same people who are designated as "autochthons" and "natives". Also, the commonly used world designation for aborigines is the phrase "indigenous peoples".

Aborigines of the New World

Most often, indigenous peoples are remembered when it comes to the history of the development of North America. Perhaps, nowhere was the fate of the Aborigines so sad as in the continental United States. The population of the vast territories of the American continent was virtually destroyed by the European civilization coming from overseas. And not always American Indians were physically exterminated. Mostly they died from expulsion from their native habitats and forced separation from the traditional way of life. This inevitably led to the abuse of alcohol brought by white people. And as a consequence - to social and personal degradation with subsequent degeneration. Not the best for the aborigines was the situation with the development of the Australian continent. The fate of the indigenous population of South America was much more happy. The Amazon's aborigines today constitute a very significant ethnic group on the continent. And they live mainly in the same natural habitat as many generations of their ancestors, while preserving their language, cultural, religious and everyday traditions. Among other things, they attract many tourists from all over the world to the continent. Aborigines, whose photos adorn the advertising materials of many tourist structures, are one of the main attractions of South America.

Aborigines in Russia

Significantly more prosperous was the fate of indigenous peoples, traditionally inhabiting the northeastern expanses of the Russian Empire. It can not be said that the colonization of Siberia was very conflict-free. Many conquerors of the Trans-Ural expanses, such as Ermak, periodically entered armed conflicts with the aborigines. But still most of the indigenous peoples were integrated into Russia quite voluntarily. For their development and prosperity, much was done both in the pre-revolutionary period and in the Soviet period of history. But at the same time the number of indigenous peoples of the north has a steady tendency to decline. Far from all these people want to preserve the traditional way of life, many choose the path of assimilation and gradual dissolution in larger ethnic groups.