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angakok

American  
[ang-guh-kok] / ˈæŋ gəˌkɒk /
Or angekok

noun

  1. a shaman in Inuit society.


Etymology

Origin of angakok

First recorded in 1760–70; from Danish angekok (earlier angekkok ), from Inuit (Greenlandic, eastern Canada) angakkoq

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Among the Eskimo the angakok, or shaman, trains his child from infancy in the art of sorcery, taking him upon his knee during his incantations and conjurations.

From The Child and Childhood in Folk-Thought Studies of the Activities and Influences of the Child Among Primitive Peoples, Their Analogues and Survivals in the Civilization of To-Day by Alexander F. Chamberlain

Besides the angakok mentioned by Mr. Tylor, Dr. Rink, in his Tales and Traditions of the Eskimo, has two other stories of escapes from the stomach of a dead animal when it is cut open.

From Indian Fairy Tales by Anonymous

The performance of a self-confident angakok is quite impressive—if one has not witnessed it too many times before.

From The North Pole Its Discovery in 1909 under the auspices of the Peary Arctic Club by Robert E. (Robert Edwin) Peary

The angakok is generally not loved—he knows too many unpleasant things that are going to happen, so he says.

From The North Pole Its Discovery in 1909 under the auspices of the Peary Arctic Club by Robert E. (Robert Edwin) Peary

The business of the angakok is mainly singing incantations and going into trances, for he has no medicines.

From The North Pole Its Discovery in 1909 under the auspices of the Peary Arctic Club by Robert E. (Robert Edwin) Peary

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