DCHP-3

scalp-lock

Hist.
DCHP-1 (pre-1967)

Entry from the DCHP-1 (pre-1967)

This entry may contain outdated or offensive information, terms, and examples.

1n.

See: scalp ((n.))(def. 1)

Quotations

1848
I'll cause . . . the plundered scalp-locks of the pigmy and giant to flutter in ghastly bloody glory. . . .
1900
Indeed, there were times when the gathering of scalp-locks was to all intents and purposes a branch--and that not the least lucrative branch--of the commerce in peltries.
1934
. . . their leggings and the arms of their shirts [were] fringed with ermine tails, or scalp-locks taken from the heads of enemies slain in combat.
2n.

a long tuft of hair worn by some Indian warriors with otherwise cropped or shaven heads as a challenge to their enemies.

Quotations

1859
He was the first Indian I had seen whose hair had been pulled out, all except the scalp-lock; this custom is common amongst many tribes of Indians, though not universal amongst any.
1925
The Indian is naturally a brave man . . . wearing his scalp-lock as an emblem of defiance.
1965
[The Canadian Indians] shaved their heads either in whole or in part; in the east and on the plains they retained the scalp-lock.