godfather
n. countablen. a man who promises to help look after a child and support their religious growth. In a more general sense, it can also mean a very influential man who started or leads a specific movement or group.
n. a male godparent who sponsors a child at baptism and assumes responsibility for their religious upbringing. By extension, refers to a pioneering or highly influential figure within a specific field or organization.
He asked his best friend to be the godfather of his son.
The local community considers him the godfather of jazz because he opened the first music school in the city.
From Middle English godfader, from Old English godfæder (“godfather”), equivalent to god- + father. Cognate with Old Saxon godfadar (“godfather”), Middle Dutch godvader (“godfather”), Danish gudfader, gudfar (“godfather”), Swedish gudfader, gudfar (“godfather”), Icelandic guðfaðir (“godfather”).
Often used metaphorically to describe a founder or pioneer ('the godfather of soul').