breckenridgeback t1_ja5cv5b wrote
Reply to comment by Invisible_Swan in ELI5: Why are native Australians called Aboriginals when in English the prefix "a" usually means "not"- ex Abnormal, atypical, etc? by Invisible_Swan
They're from different languages.
a- meaning not is from Greek, and is usually attached to other Greek roots: atheist (from Greek theo "god" as opposed to Latin deus), anoxic ("oxygen" is from Gree roots), etc.
ab- meaning "away from" (as in a direction, the opposite of "towards") is Latin, and is usually attached to other Latin roots.
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