The Tappan were a
Lenape
The Lenape (, , or Lenape , del, Lënapeyok) also called the Leni Lenape, Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. Their historical territory inclu ...
people who inhabited the region radiating from
Hudson Palisades
The Palisades, also called the New Jersey Palisades or the Hudson River Palisades, are a line of steep cliffs along the west side of the lower Hudson River in Northeastern New Jersey and Southeastern New York in the United States. The cliffs s ...
and
New York – New Jersey Highlands in at the time of European colonialization in the 17th century.
Etymology
The
exonym
An endonym (from Greek: , 'inner' + , 'name'; also known as autonym) is a common, ''native'' name for a geographical place, group of people, individual person, language or dialect, meaning that it is used inside that particular place, group, o ...
''Tappan'' is likely a derivation of a word or phrase from the
Algonquian language Lenape
The Lenape (, , or Lenape , del, Lënapeyok) also called the Leni Lenape, Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. Their historical territory inclu ...
as used by settlers to
New Netherland
New Netherland ( nl, Nieuw Nederland; la, Novum Belgium or ) was a 17th-century colonial province of the Dutch Republic that was located on the east coast of what is now the United States. The claimed territories extended from the Delmarva ...
, who spelled it as Tappaen. It is not certain what the Tappan called themselves, but there are a variety of interpretations for the word. One suggestion is that it possibly comes from ''tuphanne'' meaning ''cold water''.
Vriessendael, one of the first "
bouweries", or homesteads, built in the territory was sometimes called Tappan.
The Tappan are recalled throughout their former territory:
Lake Tappan is a reservoir on the
Hackensack River; the
Tappan Zee, widening of the Hudson River and the
bridge
A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...
crossing it;
Old Tappan in
Bergen County;
Tappan in
Rockland County.
History
The Tappan migrated seasonally and engaged in
companion planting, hunting, fishing, and trapping. Like the other natives who circulated in the region and whose territory overlapped, the
Hackensack,
Acquackanonk and
Rumachenanck (later called the Haverstraw). The Tappan were of the Turtle Clan and spoke the
Unami dialect of Lenape. The Tappan and the Hackensack actually were but one tribe and members of it were called either by one name or another according to their dwelling place. They, as well as the
Raritan,
Wappinger
The Wappinger () were an Eastern Algonquian Munsee-speaking Native American people from what is now southern New York and western Connecticut.
At the time of first contact in the 17th century they were primarily based in what is now Dutchess ...
, Manhattan (also known as "
Manhattoe
Manhattoe/Manhattoes is a term describing a place and, mistakenly, a people. The location was the very southern tip of the Manhattan island during the time of the Dutch colonization of the Americas at what became New Amsterdam there. The people ...
"), were collectively known as the River Indians. Those groups living in the adjoining
highlands to the west and north have become known as the
Munsee.
[Indian Tribes of Hudson's River; Ruttenber, E.M.; Hope Farm Press, 3rd ed, 2001, ]
Contact with the European settlers was at first as trading partners. It is from them that
David de Vries purchased the land (1640) to build the homestead at
Vriessendael (
Edgewater) and, living among them, became an advocate of learning more about indigenous culture. It was an early
Director of New Netherland,
William Kieft, who attempted to exact tribute from them (but was ignored), and later allowed a number of them to be slaughtered after they had sought safety at
Pavonia (1643), beginning a
Kieft's War.
See also
*
Exonym and endonym
An endonym (from Greek: , 'inner' + , 'name'; also known as autonym) is a common, ''native'' name for a geographical place, group of people, individual person, language or dialect, meaning that it is used inside that particular place, group, o ...
References
External links
Delaware Indian Tribe Clans
* ttp://www.delawareindians.com/ Delaware Indian/Lenni Lenapebr>Delaware Tribe of Indians
{{authority control
Lenape
Bergen County, New Jersey
Hudson County, New Jersey
People of New Netherland
Native American tribes in New Jersey
Native American history of New Jersey