Powell (surname)

Powell is a traditional Welsh surname said to mean "Son of the Servant of St. Paul,". However, there is a more likely but less "Christian" derivation as a patronymic from the Welsh first name Hywel. The Welsh term "ap" means "son of", hence Ap Hywel was eventually spelled as Powell.

Nineteenth Century persons

* Baden Powell (mathematician) (1796 – 1860), English mathematician; father of Robert Baden-Powell; long-time Chair of Geometry at University of Oxford
* John Wesley Powell (1834 – 1902), American soldier, geologist, and explorer of the American West

Twentieth Century persons

* Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. (1908 – 1972), first African American to become a powerful figure in the United States Congress
* Anthony Powell (1905 – 2000), English novelist
* Arthur William Baden Powell (1901 – 1987), New Zealand malacologist and paleontologist
* Bud Powell (1924 – 1966), jazz pianist and composer
* Cecil Frank Powell (1903 – 1969), British physicist and Nobel laureate in physics
* Cozy Powell (1947 – 1998), English drummer for bands such as Black Sabbath, Rainbow, and Whitesnake
* Dick Powell (1904 – 1963), American singer, actor, producer, and director
* Dilys Powell (1901 – 1995), British journalist, author, and film critic
* Eleanor Powell (1912 – 1982), American actress and dancer
* Enoch Powell (1912 – 1998), British politician
* Frank Powell, stage and silent film actor, screenwriter, and director
* Lewis Franklin Powell, Jr. (1907 – 1998), Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
* Mel Powell (1923 – 1998), American jazz pianist and composer
* Michael Powell (director) (1905 – 1990), British film director
* Philip Powell (architect) (1921 – 2003), British architect
* Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell (1857 – 1941), British Army lieutenant-general; founder of the world Scouting Movement
* William Powell (1892 – 1984), American actor

Living people

* Adam Clayton Powell III (born 1946), American university professor (University of Southern California)
* Adam Clayton Powell IV (politician) (born 1962), American politician
* Adam Clayton Powell IV (engineer) (born 1970), American university professor (MIT)
* Asafa Powell (born 1982), Jamaican athlete
* Billy Powell (born 1952), keyboardist of the American band Lynyrd Skynyrd
* Charles Powell (born 1941), Advisor to Prime Ministers Margaret Thatcher and John Major
* Colin Powell (born 1937), former United States Secretary of State and former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
* Cynthia Lennon "née" Powell, first wife of John Lennon
* Dina Powell (born 1974), Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs in the United States
* Don Powell, drummer for the English Rock band Slade
* Felix Powell, British song writer, best known for "Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Kit Bag and Smile, Smile, Smile"
* Gary Powell American/British musican. Previously drummer in The Libertines and now drummer in Dirty Pretty Things.
* Hope Powell (born 1966), coach of the England women's national football team
* Jane Powell (born 1929), American singer, entertainer, and actor
* John Powell (athlete) (born 1947), American discus thrower
* John Powell, American film score composer
* John W. Powell, American journalist tried for sedition in 1956
* Josh Powell, basketball player for the Golden State Warriors
* Jonathan Powell (chief of staff to Tony Blair) (born 1956), Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Tony Blair
* Katrina Powell (born 1972), Australian field hockey player
* Lisa Powell (born 1970), Australian field hockey forward
* Michael Powell (politician) (born 1963), American politician
* Michael Powell (lacrosse) ("aka" Mikey Powell), American lacrosse player
* Michael J. D. Powell (born 1936), British mathematician
* Mike Powell (athletics) (born 1963), American track and field athlete
* Nathan Powell (born 1964), Mayor of Barry, South Wales
* Robert Powell (born 1944), British television and film actor
* Suzy Powell (born 1976), American discus thrower
* William Powell (author) (born 1949), Author of The Anarchist Cookbook

Fictional character

* Herb Powell, half-brother of Homer Simpson on the American animated television series "The Simpsons"
* Reverend Harry Powell, the villain and main character in the the film "Night of the Hunter", played by Robert Mitchum