Native Americans - New Hampshire

Part 9 of an ongoing series on the history of Native American Territory as told through maps. This series is tagged as "Native American Map Series". It is recommended to visit all the Further Info links listed below for further study.

Native Americans - New Hampshire

For roughly 12,000 years, Indigenous peoples have lived where we now call "New Hampshire." The Abenaki tribe (together with the Maliseet, Passamaquoddy, Mi'kmaq, and Penobscot Indians), were members of the old Wabanaki Confederacy, adversaries of the Iroquois. These allies from the eastern seaboard spoke related languages, and Abenaki and Wabanaki have the same Algonquian root, meaning "people from the east."

The original inhabitants of the area that is now New Hampshire:

Source

There were three important subdivisions of the Abenaki tribe: the Sokoki (or Sokokis), the Cowasuck (Cowass or Coos), and the Missisquoi (or Mazipskwik.) 

Missiquoi Territory within the Larger Territory of the Western Abenaki Tribe

Although there is no local reservation or population center for the Native Americans, their names endure as names for modern-day cities, mountains and rivers:

• Amonoosuc River ('manosek) – Western Abenaki for "fishing place."
• Amoskeag Falls (namaskik) – Western Abenaki for "at the fish land."
• Contoocook River (nikn tekw ok) – Abenaki for "to or from the head or first branch of the river."
• Grand Monadnock (minoria denak) – Abenaki for "the bare or smooth mountain."
• Kearsarge (g'wizawajo) – Western Abenaki for "rough mountain."
• Massabesic Lake (massa nbes ek) – Abenaki for "to the great pond."
• Merrimack River – Abenaki for "deep water or river."
• Mount Pisgah – Abenaki for "dark."
• Nashua– Abenaki for "two."
• Sunapee Lake – Abenaki for "rock or mountain water."
• Suncook River – Abenaki for "to the rocks."
• Umbagog Lake  – Abenaki for "to the clear water lake."

Today

There are no federally recognized Indian tribes in New Hampshire today. Most Native Americans were forced to leave New Hampshire during the 1600's, when eastern tribes were being displaced by colonial expansion. The descendants of Indigenous populations who historically resided in New Hampshire can be found in several surrounding U.S. states and parts of Canada. 

Further Info

Indigenous New Hampshire

^ Interactive Map Project

• Native American tribes in New Hampshire (Wikipedia)
• History of New Hampshire Indians
• Native American Heritage