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edwardclin...
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BEST ANSWER  chosen by asker   |  edwardclint  |  October 20, 2009 12:51 AM
A chief is more of a leader than a dictator.

-quote-

"A traditional tribal chief is the leader of a tribe, or the head of a tribal form of self-government.

The notion of a "tribal chief" is rather vague and arbitrary; neither chief nor tribe is clearly defined, so in many cases other designations are used for the same institution, such as petty ruler or even headman (in a very small but autonomous community, e.g. in the jungle). In some cases they merely lead a traditional consultative entity within a larger polity, in other cases tribal autonomy comes closer to statehood. A chieftain is a leader of a tribe.

There are many variations on it, but the most common types are the chairman of a council (usually of 'elders') and/or a (broader) popular assembly in 'parliamentary' cultures, the war chief (can be an alternative or additional post in war time), the hereditary chief, the politically dominant medicineman ('theocratic' cultures).

The term is usually distinct from chiefs at still lower levels, such as village headman (geographically defined) or clan chief (an essentially genealogical notion), as the notion 'tribal' rather requires an ethno-cultural identity (racial, linguistic, religious etc.) as well as some political (representative, legislative, executive and/or judicial) expression."
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voted helpful: davepamn

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