A lonko or lonco (from Mapudungun longko, literally "head"), is a chief of several Mapuche communities. These were often ulmen, the wealthier men in the lof. In wartime, lonkos of the various local rehue or the larger aillarehue would gather in a koyag or parliament and would elect a toqui to lead the warriors in battle. Lonco sometimes forms part of geographical names such as the city of Loncoche (English: "head of an important person").
References
- Mapuche, Seeds of the Chilean Soul: An Exhibit at the Port of History Museum at Penn's Landing, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, March 27-June 30, 1992. Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino. 1992. p. 58.
- Mapuche, Seeds of the Chilean Soul: An Exhibit at the Port of History Museum at Penn's Landing, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, March 27-June 30, 1992. Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino. 1992. p. 43.
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