potlatch Hear it!

potlatch definition

☆ pot·latch (pät′lac̸h′)

noun

among some American Indians of the N Pacific coast,
  1. a winter festival
  2. a distribution or exchange of gifts during such a festival, often involving the squandering of the host's belongings

Etymology: < AmInd (Chinook) patshatl, gift

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Comments
Improve this definition.
Do you have more to add? Share your linguistic knowledge or observation.
/Register to save your comments.