Aborigines were earliest known inhabitants of a country. The term is generally applied to the original or native inhabitants of a country, as opposed to a race from another area or colonists and their descendants. Most nations have instituted measures for the welfare of the aborigines within their territories. Such measures include those of the U.S. and Canada concerning Indians and Inuits and those of Australia concerning its aboriginal groups. All aboriginal peoples have been affected by contact with contemporary civilization; in some cases, the introduction of disease, warfare, alcohol, and drugs has demoralized and destroyed peoples. Others, such as the Ainu of northern Japan, have become almost wholly assimilated. The greatest degree of racial mixture has occurred among the native Polynesians of Hawaii. The Indian population of the U.S. has extensively intermarried with whites; those Indians living on reservations retain some traditional Indian folkways. In Central and South America and in the Caribbean region, many tribes have become extinct, in most cases after Spanish or Portuguese conquest. Among aborigines who have kept strong elements of their original identity are the Inuit, Maori, Dayak, and Australian aborigines. Tribes in such comparatively inaccessible areas as the Amazon River Basin of South America still live largely according to their traditional cultures. The word 'aborigines' most probably means ______.