Powhatan: Meaning (information, definition, explanation, facts)

The Powhatan (also spelled Powatan and Powhaten) were a very powerful tribe of Native Americans, speaking an Algonquian language, who lived in what is now Virginia at the time of the first European-Native encounters. Powhatan was originally the name of the town that the chief Wahunsunacock came from. When this chief created a powerful empire by conquering much of Virginia, he called his lands Powhatan and titled himself Chief Powhatan.

In 1607, when John Smith arrived, he was captured by Opchanacanough, the younger brother of Chief Powhatan. According to Smith's account (which in the late 1800s was considered to be fabricated, but since is believed to be mostly accurate—although several highly romanticized popular versions cloud the matter), Pocahontas, Powhatan's daughter, is said to have prevented her father from executing Smith. It is believed that this was a ritual intended to adopt Smith into the tribe.

After Smith left Virginia because of an injury sustained in a gunpowder accident, the nervous tribe attacked and killed many of the Jamestown residents. The residents fought back, but only killed twenty. When Smith came back, he made peace and the past was forgotten.

However, within a few years both the Chief and Pocahontas were dead from disease. The Chief died in Virginia, but Pocahontas died in England, having been captured and married to the tobacco planter John Rolfe. Meanwhile, the English continued to encroach on Powhatan territory. After Wahunsunacock's death, his younger brother Opchanacanough became chief, and in 1622 and 1644 he attempted to force the English from Virginia. These attempts invited strong reprisals from the English, ultimately resulting in the destruction of the tribe.

The Powhatan language is now extinct, although approximately 3000 Powahatan people remain in Virginia.