marabout

American  

[mar-uh-boot, -boo] / ˈmær əˌbut, -ˌbu /

noun

1. Islam.

   1. a hermit or holy man, especially in N Africa, often wielding political power and credited with supernatural powers.

   2. the tomb or shrine of such a man.

2. marabou.

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marabout British  

/ ˈmærəˌbuː /

noun

1. a Muslim holy man or hermit of North Africa

2. a shrine of the grave of a marabout

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Other Word Forms

• maraboutism noun

Etymology

Origin of marabout

1615–25; < French < Portuguese marabuto < Arabic murābit; Almoravid, maravedi

Example Sentences

Another marabout in a suburb of Dakar said he supports the government's efforts, but Quranic schools need more financial support to improve.

From US News • Aug. 26, 2016

Another marabout in a suburb of Dakar said he supports the government’s efforts, but Quranic schools need more financial support to improve.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 25, 2016

“They tried to take away everything that made Timbuktu Timbuktu,” said Mahalmoudou Tandina, a marabout, or Islamic preacher, whose ancestors first settled in Timbuktu from Morocco in the 13th century.

From New York Times • Feb. 1, 2013

Abdul Aziz Bah, a marabout based in the Keur Massar suburb of Dakar who is responsible for 100 children, condemned the abusive teachers as charlatans.

From Los Angeles Times

On his head he wore a bonnet of marabout feathers that floated like a tiara of gossamer; his arms and legs were armored with copper bangles.

From Sacrifice by Whitman, Stephen French