potlatch

Ceremony of West Coast American Indian peoples in which the host gave away property in order to raise the prestige and social rank of the clan. Potlatches were practised among the Tlingit, Chilkat, Haida and, most elaborately, among the Kwakiutl. Gifts were distributed according to the social rank of the recipient, and the larger the potlatch the more the host could rise in rank. In the late 19th century the custom became competitive, with blankets and other gifts being burned, leading the Canadian government to ban it in 1880.

Potlatches were accompanied by dancing, singing, and feasting, as well as the lavish distribution of property. They were a means of honouring the dead, being the culmination of a series of funeral rituals and ceremonies. They also served to strengthen alliances between the clan of the deceased and the living spouse's lineage.