potlatch
Americannoun
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(among Indigenous people of the northern Pacific coast, especially the Kwakiutl) a ceremonial festival at which gifts are bestowed on the guests and property is destroyed by its owner in a show of wealth that the guests later attempt to surpass.
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Pacific Northwest. a party or celebration.
noun
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anthropol a competitive ceremonial activity among certain North American Indians, esp the Kwakiutl, involving a lavish distribution of gifts and the destruction of property to emphasize the wealth and status of the chief or clan
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informal a wild party or revel
Etymology
Origin of potlatch
First recorded in 1835–45; from Chinook Jargon pátlač, páλač, from Nuu-chah-nulth (Nootka) p̉aλp̉a- (reduplication of p̉a- “make ceremonial gifts in potlatch”) + -č suffix marking iterative aspect
Explanation
A potlatch is a periodic feast held by Indigenous tribes in the Northwest region of North America. Potlatches are meant to display wealth and power and to cement community relationships. Potlatch is from Chinook Jargon and a Nootka root, patshatl, which means "gift." The giving of gifts is a vital part of this Native tradition; in some tribes, potlatches are an intrinsic part of the economy. Wealth, status, and even hunting and fishing rights are distributed through these ceremonial feasts. They are also legitimate celebrations, often marking weddings and births, and usually include dancing, singing, and theater.
Vocabulary lists containing potlatch
Native American History - Introductory
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Native American History - Middle School and High School
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The Early Americas and European Exploration, Lessons 1–2
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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.
An activist and artist, he was a devotee of the wealth-redistributing feast known as the potlatch, which he called “the best form of resistance we have” against Western capitalism.
From New York Times ● May 2, 2024
As the characters make their winding way toward the vaunted potlatch, there are passages of quiet beauty, deep emotion and sharp observation.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 15, 2020
Echo-Hawk’s family was adopted into the tribe in a potlatch with “a huge ceremony — it was the official, Athabascan way.”
From Seattle Times ● May 1, 2018
We debated schemes for fund-raising but reluctantly decided that they would violate the party’s potlatch character.
From The New Yorker ● Jul. 3, 2016
He counted the money, and then the charms over and over again, dwelling at length upon the wonderful curative powers of the latter, but finally accepting my offer with the addition of a small potlatch.
From Official Report of the Exploration of the Queen Charlotte Islands for the Government of British Columbia by Newton H. (Newton Henry) Chittenden
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
