Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The office or rank of a chieftain; chiefship.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun uncountable The state of being a chieftain
  • noun countable The area ruled by a chieftain

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the position of chieftain

Etymologies

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Examples

  • You know you are born for chieftainship, that is a hereditary right.

    IOL: News 2008

  • In both capacities he actively opposed traditional institutions such as chieftainship, the ancestor cult, the practice of magic, polygyny and bridewealth, that kept tribesmen away from the church.

    Class & Colour in South Africa 1850-1950 Ray Esther 1969

  • Some kind of chieftainship seems coeval with the first advance from the state of separate wandering families to that of a nomadic tribe.

    Essays on Education and Kindred Subjects Everyman's Library Herbert Spencer 1861

  • "It is very alarming that some Bantustan administrations have been given land for personal use under the pretext of so-called chieftainship whereas these leaders are historically and traditionally not chiefs.

    ANC Daily News Briefing 1992

  • "I has become clear that these large claims involve issues such as chieftainship disputes and territorial expansion, even attempts to establish kingdoms lost through conquest.

    ANC Daily News Briefing 1997

  • Thus would I attain honor and chieftainship in the final abode of the dead, and thus would honor remain to my father, who was the Otter.

    THE SICKNESS OF LONE CHIEF 2010

  • It's relevant to note that the main Na'vi characters are voiced by four Black actors: Zoë Saldaña who plays the warrior princess Neytiri; CCH Pounder who plays Mo'at, the Na'vi priestess and Neytiri's mother; Laz Alonso who plays Tsu'Tey, the young warrior prince, Neytiri's betrothed and heir to the chieftainship of the Omaticayas, Neytiri's clan; and Peter Mensah who plays Akwey, leader of a plains clan of Na'vi; as well as Wes Studi,

    The Avatar Movie from a Black perspective 2010

  • In 1433, local people in Nan'an Department appealed to establish native chieftainship.

    Between Winds and Clouds: The Making of Yunnan (Second Century BCE to Twentieth Century CE) 2008

  • Furthermore, instilling in these youth the state ideology would transform these "barbarians" into civilized subjects, who in turn would civilize their "barbarian" subjects, since many of these young students came from elite families and many would succeed leaderships within the native chieftainship.

    Between Winds and Clouds: The Making of Yunnan (Second Century BCE to Twentieth Century CE) 2008

  • It's relevant to note that the main Na'vi characters are voiced by four Black actors: Zoë Saldaña who plays the warrior princess Neytiri; CCH Pounder who plays Mo'at, the Na'vi priestess and Neytiri's mother; Laz Alonso who plays Tsu'Tey, the young warrior prince, Neytiri's betrothed and heir to the chieftainship of the Omaticayas, Neytiri's clan; and Peter Mensah who plays Akwey, leader of a plains clan of Na'vi; as well as Wes Studi,

    Printing: The Avatar Movie from a Black perspective 2010

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