A person who operates, tends, or smokes from a chillum; a chillum-keeper or chillum-smoker, particularly in South Asian cultural contexts.
From Hindi 'chillumchi' or 'chillumchee,' combining 'chillum' (the pipe) with the Hindi suffix '-chi' or '-chee' (meaning 'one who does' or 'keeper of'). This occupational term entered English through British colonial documentation of Indian social roles and customs.
Try Another Word