dato

[ dah-toh; Spanish dah-taw ]

/ ˈdɑ toʊ; Spanish ˈdɑ tɔ /

(in the Philippines) a native chief.

the headman of a barrio or of a Malay tribe.

Also datu.

Origin of dato

1835–45; < Spanish or Portuguese < Malay datuk war chief

He salaamed before the dato and, without a glance at the others, bounded up the trail, away into the jungle.

The Adventures of Piang the Moro Jungle Boy |Florence Partello Stuart
Dato Kali Pandapatan scorned to report Sicto to the authorities.

The Adventures of Piang the Moro Jungle Boy |Florence Partello Stuart
They punish crime according to certain traditional laws, the dato being judge.

The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898 |Various
Dato Ynoch raised his hand for silence and turned toward the waiting populace.

The Adventures of Piang the Moro Jungle Boy |Florence Partello Stuart

The classes of people mentioned in that early age by our brother Plassencia (besides that of chief or dato) are three, as follows.

The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898 - Volume 40 of 55 |Francisco Colin

dato

/ (ˈdɑːtəʊ) /

the chief of any of certain Muslim tribes in the Philippine Islands

C19: from Spanish, ultimately from Malay dato' grandfather