A chieftain, or ceann-cinnidh as it is known in Scottish Gaelic, is a designation applied to heads of branches of a clan. The word clan, or clann, means “children”.

In earlier times, and possibly even today, clan members believed themselves to descend from a common ancestor for which the clan is named after. Just like in a family tree, in which there are different branches all belonging to the same family, chieftains represent their branch of the clan.

Historically, it was the chief and chieftains of a clan that lead battles on both land and sea. In the Scottish Highlands, the chief and chieftain were once incredibly influential political powers who wielded a high level of authority.

In the modern era, the role of a chieftain is considered a high social dignity. The status of chieftain bears no legal legitimacy due to the passing of the Heritable Jurisdictions (Scotland) Act 1746, which abolished traditional rights of jurisdiction afforded to clan chiefs and chieftains as a consequence of the 1745 Jacobite Rising.

Regarding the St Andrew’s Society of Seoul, the chieftain role is a decided via a democratic method - performed annually by the St Andrew’s Society Committee. Chieftains do not have term limits and are permitted to repeat the role if they please, but it is expected that the chieftain title is exchanged every year.