Tribes - The Lenni Lenape  

The Lenni Lenape, which means "The People", are also known as the Delaware. The name Delaware was applied to almost all Lenape people living along the Delaware River, which was named after Lord de la Warr, the governor of the Jamestown colony . The Lenape were among the first Indians to come in contact with the Europeans (Dutch, English, & Swedish) in the early 1600s. At that time, some Lenape were living in large villages of two or three hundred people, but most of them lived in small bands of 25 to 30 people.

The Lenape identified themselves by where they lived. The people who lived in the areas near the Delaware Bay and ocean took the name Unalachtigo, which means "the people who live near the ocean." Farther up the Lenapewihittuck (known today as the Delaware River) lived the Unami, or "the up-river people." The Minsi or Munsi (also called Minisink by some Europeans) "the people from the stony country," lived in the northern regions of the Lenape homeland. Lenapehoking (or land of the Lenape) included all of what is now New Jersey, eastern Pennsylvania, southeastern New York State, Northern Delaware and a small part of southeastern Connecticut.

Related families made up a clan. The Lenape had three clans - wolf, turtle and turkey, which traced their descent through the female line. The Lenape had well-organized ways of governing their clans and their villages. The chiefs were chosen for their behavior, skill in speaking, honesty, and ability to make wise decisions. War leaders were different. They gained power through proven bravery and success in battle.

Until the Europeans came, the Lenape had only tools fashioned from shell, stone, bone and wood. Women were responsible for the planting and harvesting of crops and gathering of wild foods, and for preparing meals and caring for the children. They were skilled at making clay pots, weaving rush mats and bags, and making baskets. Women were also responsible for preparing hides for clothes and shelters. With bone tools, they scraped the hair from the hides and cleaned them. Then they smoked them, cut them into pieces and sewed the pieces with bone needles.

Men prepared land for gardening. They hunted and fished, traded with other groups, and made tools. They were good woodworkers, and made bows, arrows, fishing equipment, canoes, bowls, and ladles.

Many of the Lenape Indians lived in villages for most of the year and grew much of their food. The Lenape made dome-shaped houses called wigwams where a small family or individual could live. Several families sometimes lived together in a larger "longhouse", still rounded on top, but longer. The people generally stayed in one location until their immediate resources were depleted. They would then move to a new location.

For men, light clothes would be a breechclout and leggings tied to a belt, and for women, a short, wrap-around skirt. In colder weather people added a hide shirt, a robe and perhaps mittens and fur caps. Everyone wore soft-soled deerskin moccasins.

Lenape Indians fished and hunted in all seasons. Using bows and arrows, traps, snares, and spears, they hunted deer, bear, elk and beaver. They also hunted the ducks and other birds that lived in their area. The Indians of Lenapehoking used different kinds of transport according to the season and the area in which they lived. Often they simply went on foot, making their own trail or following animal tracks or a dry streambed. In summer when streams and lakes were not frozen, it was sometimes easier to travel by water. The Lenape used dugout canoes for this purpose.

There are many tribal groups who are descended from the Lenape, that migrated west, north and eastward over the past 500-600 years. There is a very large Delaware population who make their home in Oklahoma. When addressing a member of the Lenape nation today, their descendents will always greet them as "Grandfather" or "Grandmother", out of respect for their ancestry.

To research more concerning the Lenape people and their descendents, see internet site www.lenapelifeways.org.