Indian agent
1
8.0
- noun
- /ˈɪndiən ˈeɪdʒənt/
- Archaic
:
agente indio
- Nicola knew that Indian agent Arvida Hayford usually distributed seventy-five cents per week and furnished firewood to widows.
- missionaries and Indian agents
- Indian agents and bureaucrats
- various Indian agents
Examples
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In most cases, the Indian agent conducted the business agreements or leases on behalf of the Penobscot community.
Academic text (2018) -
The Sioux had wanted to wait for the Indian agent to resolve the matter, but Grattan would not listen.
Fiction book (1992) -
You know, on the reservation we have an "Indian agent" to tell us what to do.
-
It's a sorry state of affairs when the Indian agent can only hazard a guess as how many went out.
-
I happen to be the Indian agent at San Carlos.
-
The annual reports of the Indian agent reflected a small but growing fruit industry on the Red Cliff Reservation.
Academic text (2009) -
Maine's commissioner for Indian affairs requested that the local Indian agent investigate the matter.
Academic text (2018) -
Although circumscribed by his role as Indian agent, Rafferty nevertheless makes every attempt to do right.
Academic text (2009) -
The food and supply shortages were caused and magnified by unscrupulous Indian agents who stole government-issued supplies for their own profit.
Academic text (2000) -
The Indian agent explained the new policies to the members of the tribe during the meeting.
Synonyms
∞
2.8
A person who helps and represents someone in business, legal, or official matters
104
3.5
A person who works for the country's government to enforce laws and investigate crimes
16
3.7
A person who works for the government and acts for it
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun phrase is compositionally built from 'Indian' (pertaining to indigenous American peoples) + 'agent' (a representative), so a learner who knows both words can infer it refers to a representative dealing with Indians. While institutional or historical specifics (federal role, oversight on reservations) require cultural knowledge, the core referential meaning is directly derivable from the constituents.
Etymology
The term Indian agent comes from the 1800s in the United States, when the government sent an agent, a person acting for the government, to live near and deal with local Indian tribes. Because this person handled supplies, rules, and talks between the government and the tribes, the name came to mean 'a government representative who oversees tribal affairs'.