dacoit

[sastergri]

a member of an armed gang of robbers

[SergioAnigo]

A dacoit is a term used primarily in India and Burma referring to a member of an armed gang who engages in banditry or armed robbery. The term is derived from the Hindi word dakait, which translates to bandit or brigand. Historically, dacoits were often depicted in Indian and Asian literature and cinema.

[Sonia]

one of a class of robbers, in India, who act in gangs

[EfrainaLign]

da-koit′, n. one of a gang of robbers in India and Burma—also Dakoit′.—ns. Dacoit′y, Dacoit′age, robbery by gang-robbers, brigandage. [Hind. dākāīt, a robber.]

[Carmellabita]

Dacoity is a term used for banditry in the Indian subcontinent. The spelling is the anglicised version of the Hindi word daaku; dacoit is a colloquial Indian English word with this meaning and it appears in the Glossary of Colloquial Anglo-Indian Words and Phrases (1903). Banditry is criminal activity involving robbery by groups of armed bandits. The East India Company established the Thuggee and Dacoity Department in 1830, and the Thuggee and Dacoity Suppression Acts, 1836–1848 were enacted in British India under East India Company rule. Areas with ravines or forests, such as Chambal and Chilapata Forests, were once known for dacoits.