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indios

indigenous people

noun EEN-dyos Rare

Origin: From Spanish indios (Indians), used specifically for native peoples of Latin America.

Usage Note

Indios is an invariable borrowing from Spanish used in Italian to refer specifically to indigenous peoples of Latin America (as distinct from indiani, which can mean Indian subcontinent or Native American in other contexts). It is always plural and treated as masculine plural.

Examples

"Gli indios difendevano la loro terra dalla deforestazione."

Natural Translation

The indigenous people were defending their land from deforestation.

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