wampum
Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
wampum /ˈwɒmpəm/
▶noun historical a quantity of small cylindrical beads made by North American Indians from shells, strung together and worn as a decorative belt or used as money.
– origin from Algonquian wampumpeag, from wap ‘white’ + umpe ‘string’ + the pl. suffix -ag.
'wampum' also found in these Oxford entries:
