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autochthon
5 dictionary results for: Autochthon
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
au·toch·thon       [aw-tok-thuhn] Pronunciation Key
–noun, plural -thons, -tho·nes       [-thuh-neez] Pronunciation Key.
1.an aboriginal inhabitant.
2.Ecology. one of the indigenous animals or plants of a region.
3.Geology. a geological formation formed in the region where found.
Compare allochthon.

[Origin: 1640–50; < Gk autóchthōn of the land itself, equiv. to auto- auto-1 + chthn the earth, land, ground]
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
au·toch·thon       (ô-tŏk'thən)  Pronunciation Key 
n.   pl. au·toch·thons or au·toch·tho·nes (-thə-nēz')
  1. One of the earliest known inhabitants of a place; an aborigine.
  2. Ecology An indigenous plant or animal.


[Greek autokhthōn : auto-, auto- + khthōn, earth; see dhghem- in Indo-European roots.]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
autochthon 
1646, "one sprung from the soil he inhabits" (pl. autochthones), from Gk. autokhthon, from auto- "self" + khthon "land" (see chthonic).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
autochthon

noun
the earliest known inhabitants of a region 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Autochthon

Au*toch"thon\, n.; pl. E. Authochthons, L. Autochthones. [L., fr. Gr. ?, pl. ?, from the land itself; a'yto`s self + ? earth, land.]

1. One who is supposed to rise or spring from the ground or the soil he inhabits; one of the original inhabitants or aborigines; a native; -- commonly in the plural. This title was assumed by the ancient Greeks, particularly the Athenians.

2. That which is original to a particular country, or which had there its origin.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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