cacique

[ kuh-seek ]

noun

1. a chief of an Indian clan or tribe in Mexico and the West Indies.
2. (in Spain and Latin America) a political boss on a local level.
3. (in the Philippines) a prominent landowner.
4. any of several black and red or black and yellow orioles of the American tropics that construct long, pendent nests.

cacique

/ kəˈsiːk; kəˈziːk /

noun

1. a Native American chief in a Spanish-speaking region
2. (esp in Spanish America) a local political boss
3. any of various tropical American songbirds of the genus Cacicus and related genera: family Icteridae (American orioles)

Word History and Origins

Origin of cacique¹

First recorded in 1545–55; from Spanish, from Taíno (Hispaniola)

Word History and Origins

Origin of cacique¹

C16: from Spanish, of Arawak origin; compare Taino cacique chief

Example Sentences

Molinistas fancied themselves pragmatic do-gooders who weren’t above shopping at Ross Dress for Less and believed in people power above caciques — larger-than-life leaders.

From Los Angeles Times

"We women don't want to overrule the caciques, but we do want to stand alongside them, deciding with them; our role as women is not to divide the community, but to bring everyone together."

From BBC

The family sat before an altar of saints, melted wax and the bust of a cacique, an indigenous tribal chief.

From Washington Post

Veracruz Its lucrative coffee, sugar, and oil industries have long given rise to powerful local leaders, known as caciques, who political parties depended on to deliver votes in exchange for favours and support.

From The Guardian

Few would suspect that he was earmarked from birth to become a cacique, a tribal chief.

From BBC