Sachem

A sachem or sagamore is a paramount chief among the Algonquians or other northeast American First Nation tribes. The two words are anglicizations of cognate terms (c.1622) from different Eastern Algonquian languages. Some sources contend the sagamore was a lesser chief than the sachem.

Etymology

One source explains:

According to Captain John Smith, who explored New England in 1614, the Massachusett tribes called their kings "sachems" while the Penobscots (of present-day Maine) used the term "sagamos" (anglicized as "sagamore"). Conversely, Deputy Governor Thomas Dudley of Roxbury wrote in 1631 that the kings in the bay area were called sagamores, but were called sachems southward (in Plymouth). The two terms apparently came from the same root. Although "sagamore" has sometimes been defined by colonists and historians as a subordinate lord (or subordinate chief), modern opinion is that "sachem" and "sagamore" are dialectical variations of the same word.

Cognate words

Chiefs

The "great chief" (Southern New England Algonquian: massasoit sachem) whose aid was such a boon to the Plymouth Colony is remembered today as simply Massasoit.

Sachem (disambiguation)

Sachem may refer to:

Three US Navy vessels have also borne this name:

Atalopedes campestris

Atalopedes campestris (called the Sachem in the United States) is a small skipper. It is just over 1 inch long and has orange-and-brown adults. Females are slightly larger and have paler markings on their wings compared to males.

Life cycle

Its host plants are various grasses, including lawn grasses. Its caterpillar is dark green and black. It has multiple broods per year.

Range and habitat

This skipper is common from the southern United States through Brazil. It often migrates north into U.S. northern states.

Photos

Female

Female

References

Tveten, Gloria and Tveten, John. Butterflies of Houston & Southeast Texas. University of Texas Press, ISBN 0-292-78060-5

External links