In colonial Latin America, a regional chief or leader of indigenous peoples under Spanish rule.
From Latin cacicus, borrowed from Taíno (Caribbean indigenous language) cacique. The word traveled from the Caribbean through Spanish colonial administration into English scientific and historical texts.
Cacicus is the Latin form of the Taíno word that gave us 'cacique'—it shows how colonial powers adapted indigenous leadership titles into their own bureaucratic systems, creating new vocabulary in the process.
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