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Meaning of adelantado in English:

adelantado

Pronunciation /ˌadəlanˈtɑːdəʊ/

noun

historical

The governor of a Spanish province, acting as the chief civil and judicial authority, and as military commander-in-chief in time of war; (also) a military leader with the authority to explore, colonize, and govern new territories for the Spanish crown.

Origin

Late 16th century; earliest use found in Robert Parke (fl. 1588–1589), translator. From Spanish adelantado governor, use as noun (after Arabic muqaddam see below) of the past participle of adelantar to advance, promote from adelante before, forward from ad to, at + el the + ante before.