[pot.latch] n [Chinook Jargon patlach, fr. Nootka p'atlp'ach] (ca. 1861) 1: a ceremonial feast of the American Indians of the northwest coast marked by the host's lavish distribution of gifts or sometimes destruction of property to demonstrate wealth and generosity with the expectation of eventual reciprocation
2. Northwest: a social event or celebration
[2]potlatch vt (1898) 1: to give (as a gift) esp. with the expectation of a gift in return
2: to hold or give a potlatch for (as a tribe or group) ~ vi: to hold or give a potlatch