powwow (redirected from powwows)

pow·wow  (pouwou)

n.

1. A council or meeting with or of Native Americans.

2.

a. A Native American shaman.

b. A ceremony conducted by a shaman, as in the performance of healing or hunting rituals.

3. Informal A conference or gathering.

intr.v. pow·wowed, pow·wow·ing, pow·wows Informal

To hold a powwow.

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[Narragansett powwaw, shaman.]

Word History: Because trances were so important to the Native American shaman as a means of getting in touch with spiritual forces beyond the ken of the normal person, the title powwaw, literally meaning "one who has visions," was accorded him. An occurrence of this word in an early piece of propaganda designed to bring more settlers to New England represents fairly well the Puritan attitudes to the religion of the native inhabitants of the New World: "The office and dutie of the Powah is to be exercised principally in calling upon the Devil; and curing diseases of the sicke or wounded." The word whose spelling was eventually settled in English as powwow was also used as the name for ceremonies and councils, probably because of the important role played by the shaman in both. Eventually the newcomers decided that they could have powwows too, the first reference to one of these being recorded in the Salem, Massachusetts, Gazette of 1812: "The Warriors of the Democratic Tribe will hold a powwow at Agawam on Tuesday next." The verb powwow, "to confer," was recorded even earlier, in 1780.

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powwow [ˈpaʊˌwaʊ]

n

1. a talk, conference, or meeting

2. (Social Science / Anthropology & Ethnology) a magical ceremony of certain North American Indians, usually accompanied by feasting and dancing

3. (Social Science / Anthropology & Ethnology) (among certain North American Indians) a medicine man

4. (Social Science / Anthropology & Ethnology) a meeting of or negotiation with North American Indians

vb

(intr) to hold a powwow

[from Algonquian; related to Natick pauwau one who practises magic, Narraganset powwaw]

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	powwow - (informal) a quick private conference huddle colloquialism - a colloquial expression; characteristic of spoken or written communication that seeks to imitate informal speech group discussion, conference - a discussion among participants who have an agreed (serious) topic huddler - a member of a huddle
	2.	powwow - a council of or with Native Americans council - a meeting of people for consultation; "emergency council"
Verb	1.	powwow - hold a powwow, talk, conference or meeting hash out, talk over, discuss - speak with others about (something); talk (something) over in detail; have a discussion; "We discussed our household budget"

Translations

powwow [ˈpaʊwaʊ]

A. N [of North American Indians] asamblea de indígenas norteamericanos (fig) → asamblea f, reunión f
we had a family powwow about it → hubo una asamblea or reunión familiar para discutirlo

B. VI [North American Indians] (also fig) → reunirse en asamblea

powwow

n (of Native Americans) → Versammlung f; (with Native Americans) → indianische Verhandlungen pl; (inf) → Besprechung f; (to solve problem) → Kriegsrat m (hum); a family powwow → ein Familienrat m

powwow [ˈpaʊˌwaʊ] n (fam) → riunione f

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powwow [ˈpaʊˌwaʊ] n (fam) → riunione f