shaman
- (especially among certain tribal peoples) a person who acts as intermediary between the natural and supernatural worlds, using magic to cure illness, foretell the future, control spiritual forces, etc.
Origin of shaman
Examples from the Web for shaman
Contemporary Examples of shaman
To hear 26-year-old Jillian Banks talk about her music is like listening to a shaman explain the mechanics of a complex spell.
As the Cofán shaman blew strongly over the cup, I took those few seconds to contemplate how I had managed to find myself here.
Let a shaman wave vine leaves over her and enforce a little semi-public shaming.
Don't listen to urban people scared of their own shadow, it will be fantastic, and with a Taita [shaman].
Historical Examples of shaman
He had never forgiven the Shaman, you see, for that old story about the Corn Maiden.
The Trail BookMary Austin
She put on her Shaman's dress and about the middle of the day the Cacique of the Sun sent for them.
The Trail BookMary Austin
He was older than I, but he was also fat, and for all his Shaman's dress I was not frightened.
The Trail BookMary Austin
I had the power of a Shaman, though the Holder of the Heavens had not yet spoken to me.
The Trail BookMary Austin
All this, and a great deal more, passed through the mind of the shaman.
The Trail of a SourdoughMay Kellogg Sullivan
shaman
- a priest of shamanism
- a medicine man of a similar religion, esp among certain tribes of North American Indians
Word Origin for shaman
Word Origin and History for shaman
1690s, "priest of the Ural-Altaic peoples," probably via German Schamane, from Russian sha'man, from Tungus saman, which is perhaps from Chinese sha men "Buddhist monk," from Prakrit samaya-, from Sanskrit sramana-s "Buddhist ascetic" [OED]. Related: Shamanic.