Nativas

Nativas is the feminine plural form of nativo/a in Spanish, used as an adjective or noun to indicate origin or belonging. It can refer to people, places, languages, or other things associated with a specific place. The corresponding masculine form is nativos; the term appears in everyday language as well as in academic and administrative contexts.

In ecology and botany, plantas nativas or especies nativas refer to organisms that are native to a region, as opposed to those introduced from elsewhere. This usage is common in conservation, land management, biodiversity surveys, and discussions of ecosystem health.

In anthropology and sociology, nativas may refer to indigenous or native peoples. Contemporary usage often favors terms such as pueblos originarios or indígenas to emphasize self-identification, rights, and cultural specificity, while avoiding outdated or pejorative connotations. In legal or administrative contexts, nativos or nativas has sometimes been used to denote people born in a country or region, though terminology varies by country and institution.

Linguistically, lenguas nativas or lenguas autóctonas denote indigenous languages. The phrase nativas is most informative when the context clearly indicates language, species, or people, since alone it can be ambiguous.

See also: indígenas, pueblos originarios, flora nativa, fauna nativa, lenguas nativas.