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The Lenape, also known as the Delaware people, are an Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands, with their traditional homeland stretching from New York to Delaware, encompassing parts of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia describes their historical territory.
Name and Language:
- They called themselves the Lenape, which translates to "the people" or "the original people," and spoke an Algonquian language. The Europeans called them the "Delaware Indians," after Sir Thomas West, Baron de la Warr, who governed the English colony of Virginia.
Territory:
- Their ancestral lands included southeastern New York, all of New Jersey, eastern Pennsylvania, and northeastern Delaware.
Way of Life:
- They were semi-nomadic, practicing hunting, fishing, and farming. They built villages along rivers and creeks, and their homes were called wigwams.
Culture and Beliefs:
- They had a deep connection to nature and believed in harmony with the environment, as reflected in their religious practices. They believed in a Creator and lesser gods and that all things had souls.
European Contact and Displacement:
- European settlers arrived in the early 1600s, leading to the gradual displacement of the Lenape from their ancestral lands. They were pushed westward and relocated to reservations in other parts of the country.
Present-Day Status:
- Today, there are three federally recognized Lenape tribes: The Delaware Tribe in Oklahoma, the Delaware Nation in Oklahoma, and the Stockbridge-Munsee Community in Wisconsin.
- Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania:
- A non-federally recognized Lenape group in Pennsylvania is the Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania, which is actively pursuing recognition by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
- Lenape Indian Tribe of Delaware:
- This tribe is recognized by the State of Delaware, with Dennis J. Coker serving as the elected Principal Chief since 1996.
Lenape Language:
- The Lenape language is one of two Delaware languages, the other being Munsee.
References
- http://www.talk-lenape.org/
- http://talk-lenape.org/stories
- Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania < link >
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lenape