The Many Names Of Pocahontas And Their Meanings

The National Women's History Museum reports that Matoaka was a "private" name. The name was so private — or secret — that Pocahontas did not tell anyone what it was until she was older. In fact, English travel writer Samuel Purchas writes in "Purchas, His Pilgrimes" that Pocahontas was afraid that the English might hurt her if they knew about her private name (via Encyclopedia Virginia). 

Pocahontas, however, was not a private name, and it means "playful one," according to the NPS. She might have acquired this moniker because she was curious and lively, per the NPS. That said, Encyclopedia Virginia reports that Englishman William Strachey, who lived at Jamestown from 1610 to 1611 and wrote about the naming practices of the Powhatans, said that Pocahontas translated to "little wanton." He explained this name could have meant a few things that ranged from sexually bawdy to cruel and undisciplined.

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