Chief came into English about 1300 from Old French chief, "leader, ruler, head," and ultimately from Latin caput, "head." It is one of a large family of English words that are all, underneath, the Latin word for head: capital, captain, chapter, cattle, chattel and chef are all the same root arriving by different roads at different dates.
The ch here is the early one, pronounced as in church, because English borrowed the word while French still said it that way. When English went back to the same French word in 1842 it got chef, with the modern French sh sound. The specific senses came later: head of a clan from the 1570s, and then — by 1713 — applied to the leaders of Native American peoples, a use imposed from outside, as William Penn's earlier habit of calling them kings makes clear.
chief (adj.) c. 1300, "highest in rank or power; most important or prominent; supreme, best, placed above the rest," from Old French chief "chief, principal, first" (10c., Modern French chef ), from Vulgar Latin *capum (source also of Spanish and Portuguese cabo , Italian capo , Provençal cap ), from Latin caput "head," also "leader, guide, chief person; summit; capital city" (from PIE root *kaput- "head"). also from c. 1300 chief (n.) c. 1300, "head, leader, captain; the principal or most important part of anything;" from Old French chief "leader, ruler, head" of something, "capital city" (10c., Modern French chef ), from Vulgar Latin *capum , from Latin caput "head," also "leader, chief person; summit; capital city" (from PIE root *kaput- "head"). The meaning "head of a clan" is attested from 1570s; it was later extended to headmen of Native American tribes (by 1713; William Penn, 1680s, called them kings ). Commander-in-chief is attested from 1660s. also from c. 1300
chief came in through Norman French, and its spelling follows that family's conventions.
How that family writes these sounds
| /tʃ/ | chchamber, charge, chase, chief |
What gives it away on the page
| ch said as /tʃ/ | Early French loans; later French loans say /ʃ/ instead (see below).chamber, chase, charge, chief |
Norman French in the spelling guide · guess another word's family