griot

noun gri·ot \ ˈgrē-ˌō \

Updated on: 30 Apr 2018

Definition of griot

: any of a class of musician-entertainers of western Africa whose performances include tribal histories and genealogies; broadly : storyteller

See griot defined for kids

Recent Examples of griot from the Web

Sory’s work, seen today, seems to beckon across the gulf of time to a past all but lost, a past mired in legends of emirs and mansas and griots, a past that reforms into an ever-evolving and frenetic present.

— chris abani, The New Republic, "Capturing a lost era in Sanlé Sory’s studio portraits in Burkina Faso," 19 Apr. 2018
Trio Da Kali plays music of the griots or djelis of Mali.

— john adamian, courant.com, "Trio Da Kali To Play Cafe Nine," 31 Mar. 2018
Some turkey and griot had to be tossed after being kept at too warm a temperature.

— david j. neal, miamiherald, "Poop in the oven, live rodents, dead rodents — and 12 restaurants are shut down | Miami Herald," 26 Feb. 2018
By her grace Zandria Robinson is a shaman, griot, marabout, holy figure in atypical package.

— tunde wey, San Francisco Chronicle, "Black women are the future of the food industry," 15 Dec. 2017
Albeit still a proud griot in his own right and product of the hip-hop generation, Bamz today is a new man attempting to forge his legacy in a new world: Hollywood.

— marjua estevez, Billboard, "From Spanish Harlem to Hollywood, Rapper Bodega Bamz Muscles Through His Acting Debut," 18 Oct. 2017
That optimism is the Detroit tradition of which the griot sings.

— thomas j. sugrue, New York Times, "In Praise of the Black Men and Women Who Built Detroit," 6 Sep. 2017
Gregory's retelling fits his public role as a griot, preserving and passing on oral traditions.

— jim higgins, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Dick Gregory riffs on 'Defining Moments in Black History'," 1 Sep. 2017
There are farmers, too, and twirling griots and dancing, stick-wielding women.

— david lyman, Cincinnati.com, "A day at the museum: Hypnotic and mesmerizing," 18 Aug. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'griot.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

An African tribal storyteller and musician is called a griot. The griot’s role was to preserve the genealogies and oral traditions of the tribe. They were usually among the oldest men in a tribe. In places where written language is the privilege of the few, the place of the griot as cultural guardian is still maintained. In Senegal, for example, the griot—without resorting to fantasy—recites poems or tells stories of warriors, drawing on his own sources of inspiration.