potlatch
Syllables: pot·latchUK/ˈpɒtlætʃ//ˈpɑtˌlæt͡ʃ/
potlatch noun: a ceremony amongst certain indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest in which gifts are bestowed upon guests and personal property is destroyed in a show of generosity and wealth.
Noun
potlatch (usually uncountable, plural potlatches)
- A ceremony amongst certain indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest in which gifts are bestowed upon guests and personal property is destroyed in a show of generosity and wealth.
- First, the Indian himself is to be sought out; then the horse is to be tried; next the price is to be discussed, then the mode of payment, and finally the potlatch: each and all are matters of grave consideration and delay, during which the Indians make a business of watching every circumstance of...1844, Charles Wilkes, “Puget Sound and Okonagan”, in Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition during the Years 1838, 1839, 1840, 1841, 1842. […], volume IV, Philadelphia, Pa.: […] C....
- The end of all this scraping and hoarding is to give away the property again at some potlatch, at which in a few hours the labour of years will be dissipated. The feasts are often given by the chief men of small tribes as a sort of peace-offering to more powerful ones; but most frequently they are...1873, Robert Brown, “The North-western American Indians”, in The Races of Mankind: […], volume I, London; Paris: Cassell, Petter, & Galpin, →OCLC, pages 75–76
- A communal meal to which guests bring dishes to share; a potluck.
- If all went according to plan, the bands could harvest tons of meat, fat and animal skins in a single afternoon of collective effort, and either consume these riches in a giant potlatch, or dry, smoke or (in Arctic areas) freeze them for later usage.2014, Yuval Noah Harari, Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, London: Vintage Books, →ISBN
- Synonyms:
- fuddle
Verb
potlatch (third-person singular simple present potlatches, present participle potlatching, simple past and past participle potlatched)
- To give; especially, to give as a gift during a potlatch ceremony.
- He was a Chilkaht chief, and it being New Year's day, he had been to General Davis's house and "potlatched" (treated) to a bottle of whiskey.[1869 November 10, “[Accompanying Papers. Alaska.] Appendix M. Letter from William S. Dodge, Ex-mayor of Sitka, on Affairs in Alaska Generally.”, in Report of the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Made...
- I came to see if you can potlatch any old sword, and hi-yu buttons [plenty buttons].1871 September, “About the Shores of Puget Sound”, in The Overland Monthly: Devoted to the Development of the Country, volume VII, number 3, San Francisco, Calif.: John H. Carmany & Company, →OCLC...
- To carry out or take part in a potlatch ceremony.
- [page 85] In Oregon, Washington, British Columbia and Alaska, a native who has acquired a large share of this world's goods becomes at times stricken with a sort of ecstasy, when he feels it incumbent on himself to organize a sort of conscience fund on his own hook. He calls his neighbors together...1890, Alexander Badlam, “Totems and Shamans”, in The Wonders of Alaska, San Francisco, Calif.: The Bancroft Company, →OCLC, pages 85–86
- Natives did not get their wheels into the water until the [salmon] run was nearly over; were all potlaching until the latter part of July.1920 May 4, John Evans (witness), To Prohibit Fishing for Salmon in the Yukon River. Part 2: Hearings before the United States House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, Subcommittee on Fish...
Examples of potlatch in a sentence
- No one can be sure of closing his bargain, until the terms are duly arranged, the potlatch given, and the horse delivered.1844, Charles Wilkes, “Puget Sound and Okonagan”, in Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition during the Years 1838, 1839, 1840...
- The end of all this scraping and hoarding is to give away the property again at some potlatch, at which in a few hours the labour of years will be dissipated.1873, Robert Brown, “The North-western American Indians”, in The Races of Mankind: […], volume I, London; Paris: Cassell, Petter, & Galpin...
- At his second potlatch he received the eagle.1897, Franz Boas, “The Social Organization and the Secret Societies of the Kwakiutl Indians, […]”, in Annual Report of the Board of Regents...
- No potlatch or secret society initiation could be given by a tribal member until the chief had officially opened the winter ceremonial season.[1951], Viola E[dmundson] Garfield, “Part 1: The Tsimshian and Their Neighbors”, in Viola E. Garfield, Paul S. Wingert, Marius Barbeau...
Synonyms of potlatch
Forms of potlatch
| Noun | |
|---|---|
| plural | potlatches |
| alternative form | potlach |
| alternative form | potlache |
| Verb | |
| third-person singular present | potlatches |
| present participle | potlatching |
| past participle | potlatched |
| past | potlatched |
Origin of potlatch
The noun is borrowed from Chinook Jargon potlatch, pátlač (“to give; gift; gift-giving ceremony, potlatch”), from Nootka Jargon pa'chatle, pa'chēētle, pah-chilt (“to give, give me”), from Nootka p̕ačiƛ (“to give a gift during a potlatch ceremony”). Sense 1 of the verb (“to give; especially, to give a gift during a potlatch ceremony”) is borrowed from Chinook Jargon potlatch, pátlač (see above); sense 2 (“to carry out or take part in a potlatch ceremony”) is derived from the noun.
Words formed from potlatch
Questions about potlatch
- What does potlatch mean?
- Potlatch means a ceremony amongst certain indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest in which gifts are bestowed upon guests and personal property is destroyed in a show of generosity and wealth.
- How do you use potlatch in a sentence?
- No one can be sure of closing his bargain, until the terms are duly arranged, the potlatch given, and the horse delivered.
- What part of speech is potlatch?
- Potlatch can be a noun or a verb.
- How do you pronounce potlatch?
- Potlatch is pronounced /ˈpɒtlætʃ/ (UK).
- What is the plural of potlatch?
- The plural of potlatch is potlatches.
Words near potlatch in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: potlatch (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-potlatch.mp3.
Cite this entry: “potlatch.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/potlatch. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.