sortero

Old Spanish

Etymology

From suerte (“lot, fate”) +‎ -ero (occupational suffix). Compare Old Galician-Portuguese sorteira (“witch”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /soɾˈteɾo/

Noun

sortero m (plural sorteros, feminine singular sortera, feminine plural sorteras)

1. a person who draws lots, a soothsayer or oracle
   • c. 1200, Almerich, Fazienda de Ultramar, f. 32v:

     & fue demãdar cõſeio auna mugier ſortera q̃ era en edom […] ſta mugier ouo mẏedo al reẏ e dixo q̃ nõ faria.

     And [so] he went to seek counsel from a soothsayer that lived in Edom. […] [But] this woman was afraid of the king, and she said she would not do [as he asked].

Synonyms

• (soothsayer): adeuino m, mago m

Descendants

• Spanish: sortero