Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Exceptionally light silky wool from the undercoat of the chiru.
  • noun A soft light fabric made from this wool.
  • noun A scarf or shawl made of this wool.

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

  • noun countable A light but warm Kashmiri shawl made with hair from the chiru, or Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii), an endangered species.
  • noun uncountable Fibre used in the making of such shawls.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Ultimately (perhaps via Punjabi) from Kashmiri shāhtōsa : shāh, king (from Persian; see shah) + tōsa, shahtoosh wool.]

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Examples

  • It's called shahtoosh, and it comes from the chiru, an endangered wild Tibetan antelope.

    Passion For Pashmina 2008

  • It is being slaughtered illegally by the thousands for its wool actually, the underfur of the chiru, which is known in the international market as "shahtoosh" or "king of wool."

    Ying Ying the Chiru (Tibetan Antelope), try not to buy shahtoosh Sun Bin 2005

  • While 'Shining Spirit' is a film on Tibetan culture, songs and separated families, 'A Shawl to Die For 'traces the ancient handicraft of' shahtoosh 'weaving in Kashmir and traces its link to the hunting of Tibetan antelope or chiru in China to extract the fibre.

    India eNews 2009

  • Two things I would give to everyone if I could: a book and a cashmere shahtoosh scarf like the one I mentioned.

    Cashmere King Brunello Cucinelli 2011

  • For many years, I've traveled with an oversized shahtoosh scarf from India.

    Cashmere King Brunello Cucinelli 2011

  • The wildlife zoologist Richard Harris says the poaching was as vital to the local economy as opium cultivation in Afghanistan or coca growing in Colombia.27 Just as in those cases, the blame for the illegal trade ultimately rested with rich Western consumers who buy expensive shahtoosh shawls.

    When a Billion Chinese Jump Jonathan Watts 2010

  • Selected as a mascot for the Beijing Olympics, the chiru, a talismanic creature that is actually more goat than antelope, is much in demand for its fine shahtoosh wool.

    When a Billion Chinese Jump Jonathan Watts 2010

  • The wildlife zoologist Richard Harris says the poaching was as vital to the local economy as opium cultivation in Afghanistan or coca growing in Colombia.27 Just as in those cases, the blame for the illegal trade ultimately rested with rich Western consumers who buy expensive shahtoosh shawls.

    When a Billion Chinese Jump Jonathan Watts 2010

  • The wildlife zoologist Richard Harris says the poaching was as vital to the local economy as opium cultivation in Afghanistan or coca growing in Colombia.27 Just as in those cases, the blame for the illegal trade ultimately rested with rich Western consumers who buy expensive shahtoosh shawls.

    When a Billion Chinese Jump Jonathan Watts 2010

  • Selected as a mascot for the Beijing Olympics, the chiru, a talismanic creature that is actually more goat than antelope, is much in demand for its fine shahtoosh wool.

    When a Billion Chinese Jump Jonathan Watts 2010

Comments

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  • Newsweek (March 10, 2008) defines this as "the hair of endangered antelopes."

    March 12, 2008

  • Really? Neat!

    March 12, 2008