Powhatan
noun
Pow·ha·tan
ˌpau̇-ə-ˈtan 
pau̇-ˈha-tᵊn
1
plural Powhatan or Powhatans
: a member of a confederacy of Indigenous peoples of eastern Virginia
2
: the Algonquian language of the Powhatan people
Examples of Powhatan in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Shirley and David Modlin, the owners of 3D Design and Manufacturing of Powhatan, Virginia, said their costs have jumped because of tariffs and other factors.
—
Megan Cerullo, CBS News, 18 Dec. 2025
There were high-profile legal scrapes, one for drug possession and a potentially fatal 2005 car accident on a road in Richmond’s Powhatan County.
—Keith Murphy, VIBE.com, 12 Dec. 2025
Speakers include Zachary Elledge, park interpreter at the Powhatan park; Angela Gibbs, park curator at Jacksonport State Park; and Bonnie Marberry, park interpreter at Davidsonville Historic State Park.
—Eric E. Harrison, Arkansas Online, 6 Sep. 2025
That includes Henrico, Powhatan and Chesterfield, which potentially has more in the works.
—Sabrina Moreno, Axios, 6 Feb. 2025
Another might find a contested artifact like Powhatan’s Mantle—still on display at Oxford’s Ashmolean Museum, whose origins lay in the Tradescant Ark.
—The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 8 Jan. 2025
Historically, Pocahontas was the daughter of the Powhatan tribe’s powerful chief, but the title of princess feels culturally inaccurate.
—Melissah Yang, refinery29.com, 4 Dec. 2024
The Mattaponi and Pamunkey tribes are remnants of the great Powhatan Confederacy that greeted the earliest English settlers.
—Andrew Sharp, Outdoor Life, 27 Nov. 2024
Pocahontas was the daughter of Powhatan, a powerful chief who led a large group of tribes in the area of what is now Virginia where the Jamestown colonists settled in 1607.
—Sean Krofssik, Hartford Courant, 29 July 2024
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Megan Cerullo, CBS News, 18 Dec. 2025
There were high-profile legal scrapes, one for drug possession and a potentially fatal 2005 car accident on a road in Richmond’s Powhatan County.
—Keith Murphy, VIBE.com, 12 Dec. 2025
Speakers include Zachary Elledge, park interpreter at the Powhatan park; Angela Gibbs, park curator at Jacksonport State Park; and Bonnie Marberry, park interpreter at Davidsonville Historic State Park.
—Eric E. Harrison, Arkansas Online, 6 Sep. 2025
That includes Henrico, Powhatan and Chesterfield, which potentially has more in the works.
—Sabrina Moreno, Axios, 6 Feb. 2025
Another might find a contested artifact like Powhatan’s Mantle—still on display at Oxford’s Ashmolean Museum, whose origins lay in the Tradescant Ark.
—The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 8 Jan. 2025
Historically, Pocahontas was the daughter of the Powhatan tribe’s powerful chief, but the title of princess feels culturally inaccurate.
—Melissah Yang, refinery29.com, 4 Dec. 2024
The Mattaponi and Pamunkey tribes are remnants of the great Powhatan Confederacy that greeted the earliest English settlers.
—Andrew Sharp, Outdoor Life, 27 Nov. 2024
Pocahontas was the daughter of Powhatan, a powerful chief who led a large group of tribes in the area of what is now Virginia where the Jamestown colonists settled in 1607.
—Sean Krofssik, Hartford Courant, 29 July 2024
Cite this Entry
“Powhatan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Powhatan. Accessed 24 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationBiographical Definition
Powhatan
biographical name
Pow·ha·tan
ˌpau̇-ə-ˈtan
pau̇-ˈha-tᵊn
1550?–1618 Wa-hun-sen-a-cawh or Wahunsonacock; father of Pocahontas chief of the Powhatan people
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