Sheik (?), n. [Ar. sheikh, shaykh, a venerable old man, a chief, fr. shakha to grow or be old.]
The head of an Arab family, or of a clan or a tribe; also, the chief magistrate of an Arab village. The name is also applied to Mohammedan ecclesiastics of a high grade.
[Written also
scheik,
shaik,
sheikh.]
© Webster 1913.