mahout

[ muh-hout ]

/ məˈhaʊt /

the keeper or driver of an elephant, especially in India and the East Indies.

Origin of mahout

1655–65; < Hindi mahāut, variant of mahāvat; compare Prakrit mahāmatta, Sanskrit mahāmatra elephant driver

One, a mahout, or tender, straddled the neck to guide the creature.

How to Capture an Elephant: Excerpt From Michael Daly’s ‘Topsy’ |Michael Daly |July 8, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
The mahout hurried to my rescue and then examined the damaged tail of his animal.

From the Caves and Jungles of Hindostan |Helena Pretrovna Blavatsky
It was wonderful to see how gently he could play with the little brown baby of the mahout.

Adventures in Many Lands |Various
A mahout, seeing her danger, urged his elephant toward her and reached her just as she was about to let go.

The Adventures of Kathlyn |Harold MacGrath

Then to the mahout she continued in Urdu, "Gul Dad, are you hurt?"

The Jungle Girl |Gordon Casserly
So I tugged at the arm of the second mahout, who was sitting behind his chief, and he scrambled down beside me.

Caves of Terror |Talbot Mundy

mahout

/ (məˈhaʊt) /

(in India and the East Indies) an elephant driver or keeper

C17: Hindi mahāut, from Sanskrit mahāmātra of great measure, originally a title