Aboriginalities

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The qualities or characteristics that are inherent to indigenous groups and their cultures are referred to by this term
2. This term encompasses the unique traits and attributes that belong to original inhabitants of a region
3. It denotes the specific cultural elements and natural features associated with native populations

Etymology: The plural "aboriginalities" is simply the plural of "aboriginality," a noun built from the adjective "aboriginal" plus the suffix "-ity." The suffix is the one found in words like "reality" and "locality," and it reached English through Old French "-ite" from Latin "-itās," a common way of turning an adjective into a noun for a quality or state. "Aboriginal" itself is the older, more interesting part. It comes from Latin "aborigines," the name for the early inhabitants of a land, and that name is usually understood as meaning "from the beginning" or "from the origin," which is why the adjective came to describe a people who were there first. The noun "aboriginality" thus names the characteristics associated with those first inhabitants, and the plural form simply counts such sets of traits across different peoples.