Skip to main content
pastoralist

pastoralist

1 7.4
A person who raises and looks after grazing animals like cattle or sheep
  • noun
  • /ˈpæstərəlɪst/
  • Specialized
translation icon : pastor
  • In contrast to the Waata, the Maasai and Orma were nomadic pastoralists, moving seasonally with their herds in search of pasture and water.
  • Maasai pastoralists
  • nomadic pastoralists
  • livestock from pastoralists

So there are active nomads and pastoralists who travel from the Horn of Africa all the way up to Kenya to Djibouti.

Examples

  • The Maasai, as a result, had to move and therefore adapt their pastoralist traditions to new environments.

    Academic text (2007)
  • The pastoralist community moved to a new grazing area to find better pastures for their cattle.

  • These are nomadic pastoralists and these are not the folks next door.

  • The widespread and rapid death of cattle therefore threatened the very bases of stability within pastoralist communities.

    Academic text (2013)
  • There are mostly two types of people in Turkana County, pastoralists and fishers.

  • Somalis traditionally measure wealth in terms of livestock and therefore do not necessarily view pastoralists as poor.

    Academic text (2003)
  • The pastoralist Maasai, who had long shared the landscape with elephants rather than hunting them, fared somewhat better.

    Academic text (2018)
  • Competition for resources increases the likelihood of large numbers of Maasai pastoralists being impoverished by droughts of even very low intensity.

    Academic text (1994)
  • The Seljuk Turks were pastoralists, nomadic livestock farmers from the Central Asian steppe.

  • The Maasai and Orma remain predominantly pastoralists, although declining access to pasture and persistent droughts have forced some to become farmers.

    Academic text (2018)

Synonyms

cowboy
vspastoralist
  • US
458 1.8

A person who looks after cattle, often riding horses

is the broad occupation of raising and herding across regions and species
shepherd
vspastoralist
93 1.9

A person who looks after and guides sheep on open land

is broader, covering care of sheep, goats, and cattle together
rancher
vspastoralist
  • US
88 2.7

A person who owns or looks after a ranch that has cattle and sheep

describes the general herding lifestyle beyond ownership or management
herder
vspastoralist
15 3.7

A person who looks after and moves animals like sheep or cattle

is the broader traditional term covering all grazing animal keepers
goat herder
vspastoralist
4 3.2

A person who looks after and moves goats as a job

is broader, applying to goat, sheep, and cattle herding lifestyles
cattleman
vspastoralist
4 4.2

A person who raises and looks after cattle on a farm or ranch

covers raising several grazing species, not limited to cattle
sheepherder
vspastoralist
  • US
3 5.6

A person who looks after sheep on open land

is the general herding role that includes many grazing animals
shepherdess
vspastoralist
3 6.5

A woman who looks after sheep

is the general occupation of raising and herding grazing animals
herdsman
vspastoralist
1 5.0

A person who looks after and moves a group of animals like cows or sheep

is the general life and work of raising grazing animals
cowherd
vspastoralist
  • Archaic
1 6.8

A person who looks after cows, often riding a horse on a farm

is the broader occupation of raising and herding various grazers
grazier
vspastoralist
  • UK
1 8.8

A person who looks after cattle or sheep on grassland for sale

focuses more on the lifestyle and herding practices than on commerce
cowman
vspastoralist
  • UK
1 5.5

A person who looks after cows on a farm or ranch, often riding a horse

includes that paid role but also nonemployee traditional herding lifestyles
herdman
vspastoralist
4.1

A person who looks after a group of animals like cows or sheep

covers that role but also includes broader livestock raising methods
herdswoman
vspastoralist
7.1

A woman who looks after a group of farm animals like sheep or cattle

is the gender-neutral occupation of raising and herding grazing animals
stock raiser
vspastoralist
4.4

A person who keeps and breeds animals like cows and sheep for meat or milk

is the general way of life raising grazing animals, not only business
ranchman
vspastoralist
  • US
4.8

A person who owns or works on a ranch and cares for cattle and horses

is the wider category of people who raise and herd grazers
sheepman
vspastoralist
8.0

A man who raises and cares for sheep

covers that specific focus but also other grazing animal raising

Surface Forms

pastoralist singular
pastoralists plural

Morphology

pastoralist = pastoral (transparent) = pastoral + ist

Agentive formation from the adjective 'pastoral' is regular: a 'pastoralist' is someone engaged in pastoral (grazing/shepherding) activities.

Etymology

The word pastoralist comes from the Latin word pastor, which means 'shepherd', and it shares the same root as pasture, the grassland where animals eat. So a pastoralist is someone who raises and herds grazing animals, like sheep or cattle.