sachem

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English

Etymology

Borrowed from Narragansett sachem; compare Mi'kmaq saqamaw (“chief”) and Unami sakima (“chief”), all ultimately from Proto-Algonquian *sa·kima·wa. Doublet of sagamore.

Pronunciation

Noun

sachem (plural sachems) (US, chiefly historical)

  1. A chief of one or several Native American tribe(s), especially of the Algonquians; a sagamore.
    • 1851 November 14, Herman Melville, chapter XVI, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC:
      Planted with their broad ends on the deck, a circle of these slabs laced together, mutually sloped towards each other, and at the apex united in a tufted point, where the loose hairy fibres waved to and fro like the top-knot on some old Pottowottamie Sachem’s head.
    • 1983, Howard S. Russell, Indian New England Before the Mayflower, page 19:
      If a sachem was too harsh, a tribesman might leave and join another tribe.
  2. (informal)
    1. A boss, a leader.
      Synonyms: see Thesaurus:boss
    2. (archaic) An eminent member of a group, or an eminent person in society; a sagamore.
  3. (politics) A high-ranking officer of the Tammany Hall political organization.
    • 1865, R. G. Horton, “The History of Tammany Society, or, Columbian Order. Chapter V. From 1834 to 1840.”, in D. T. Valentine, Manual of the Corporation of the City of New York, New York, N.Y.: Edmund Jones & Co. [for the Common Council], →OCLC, page 876:
      The society elects annually thirteen sachems, which represent the original thirteen States. […] The other officers of the society are a Secretary, Treasurer, Sagamore, and Wiskinkie.
    • 1983, Virgil W. Peterson, The Mob: 200 Years of Organized Crime in New York, page 4:
      Aboriginal titles were adopted and the head of each tribe was called a sachem. […] Its proprietor, Abraham Martling, was elected a sachem on several occasions and members of Tammany were often called Martling Men.

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

boss, leader — see boss,‎ leader

References

  1. ^ Compare “sachem, n.”, in OED Online Paid subscription required⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, March 2022; “sachem, n.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.

Further reading

Anagrams

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from English sachem, from an Algonquian language.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈsaː.xəm/
  • Hyphenation: sa‧chem

Noun

sachem m (plural sachems)

  1. sachem, Native American chief
    • 1704 January, Europische Mercurius, Vol. 15, part I, pages 82 & 83:
      IN July voorleeden is onze Gouverneur Ooſtwaart de Vrede met de Indiaanen weezen vernieuwen ; van 300 der zelve onder hun Hoofd Sachem Moxus en andere Sagomoren ontmoet ; aan dezen door hem in een opgeregte Tent, met een Koninglyke Standaard, betuigd , dat hy , ingevalle zy tot oorlog kwamen , 2200 Man vaardig had om op hen te vallen ; dat de Lord Cornbury , Gouverneur van Nieuw-Jork, de Mohowkons tegens hen zou opmaaken ; en dat hy gekomen was om uit henlieden te verſtaan , of zy voor de Vrede of den Oorlog waren.
      (please add an English translation of this quotation)

French

Noun

sachem m (plural sachems)

  1. sachem

Further reading

Galician

Verb

sachem

  1. (reintegrationist norm) inflection of sachar:
    1. third-person plural present subjunctive
    2. third-person plural imperative

Portuguese

Pronunciation

 

Verb

sachem

  1. inflection of sachar:
    1. third-person plural present subjunctive
    2. third-person plural imperative

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French sachem.

Noun

sachem m (plural sachemi)

  1. sachem

Declension

Declension of sachem
singular plural
indefinite articulation definite articulation indefinite articulation definite articulation
nominative/accusative (un) sachem sachemul (niște) sachemi sachemii
genitive/dative (unui) sachem sachemului (unor) sachemi sachemilor
vocative sachemule sachemilor

References

  • sachem in Academia Română, Micul dicționar academic, ediția a II-a, Bucharest: Univers Enciclopedic, 2010. →ISBN
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