Etymology
Borrowed from German Schamane, from Russian шамаÌн or Å¡amán, from Evenki шама̄н or ÅŸamÄn, Ñама̄н or samÄn. The Evenki word is possibly derived from the root ша- (to know), or else a loanword from Tocharian B á¹£amÄne (monk), or Chinese 沙門ï¼æ²™é—¨ or shÄmén (Buddhist monk), from Pali samaṇa, from Sanskrit शà¥à¤°à¤®à¤£ or Å›ramaṇa (ascetic, monk, devotee), from शà¥à¤°à¤® or Å›rama (weariness, exhaustion; labor, toil; etc.), which would make this a doublet of sramana.
Noun
shaman (plural shamans)
- A traditional faith healer; a witch doctor.
- A member of certain tribal societies who acts as a spiritual or religious medium between the concrete and spirit worlds; sometimes also a healer.
Usage notes
- The plural form is shamans, not shamen; the etymologically-consistent plural form from the original Evenki is shamasal, but this form sees no use in English; the plural form shamans is, however, universally accepted.
Derived terms
- shamaness
- shamanism
Credits
New World Encyclopedia writers and editors copied and adjusted this Wiktionary entry in accordance with NWE standards. This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. Credit for this article is due to both New World Encyclopedia contributors and the selfless volunteer contributors of the Wikimedia Foundation. To cite this article click here for a list acceptable citing formats.The history of earlier contributions at Wiktionary is accessible to researchers here:
