datu
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of datu
First recorded in 1925–30; from Tagalog datu, dato “landowner, head of a clan or tribe”; akin to dato ( def. )
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.
He says the chests were given to him by a datu, or tribal chief.
From BusinessWeek • Jan. 18, 2012
Therefore they must wait until every datu from the farthest Moro island had arrived.
From Time Magazine Archive
His wives, children, and guests eat from a long row of dishes set on the floor, but the datu takes his food alone at a considerable distance from the others.
From The Wild Tribes of Davao District, Mindanao The R. F. Cummings Philippine Expedition by Cole, Fay-Cooper
Taking up a bud she swung the palm leaf above it, chanting meanwhile, and, as she finished, handed it to the datu who opened it and read the signs sent by the spirits.
From The Wild Tribes of Davao District, Mindanao The R. F. Cummings Philippine Expedition by Cole, Fay-Cooper
The time for the festival having been agreed upon, messengers are sent to other datu and head-men, inviting them and their people to attend.
From The Wild Tribes of Davao District, Mindanao The R. F. Cummings Philippine Expedition by Cole, Fay-Cooper
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.
