Chieftainship

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The role of a leader within a community or tribe, often suggested by hereditary succession, who exerts influence and authority over members
2. A governing position signifying leadership among clans or tribes, typically associated with traditional customs and lineage-based power
3. The state or condition of holding a leadership role within a tribal society, characterized by authority and the maintaining of cultural traditions

Etymology: "Chieftainship" is a plain English compound: "chieftain" plus the suffix "-ship", which turns a noun into a word for a state, office or condition, as in "friendship" or "lordship". The base word "chieftain" came into English from Old French "chevetain" (a head or leader), which in turn descends from Late Latin "capitaneus", meaning a leader of men, and that is the same Latin ancestor that gave English "captain". That shared ancestry explains the closest relative of "chieftainship". "Captainship" comes from the same Latin root, arriving through a different French route, so the two words are doublets: the same origin, reaching English twice and taking on slightly different lives. "Chieftain" kept a sense of a leader of a clan or tribe, while "captain" moved toward military and naval command, which is why "chieftainship" is the form most readily used for tribal leadership.

Synonyms: leadership, authority, command, dominion

Antonyms: subordination, inferiority, servitude, submission