Wani’shi Ni’tis

I am a big fan of Native American (formerly known as Indians) history. The tribe that interests me most is the Lenni Lenape. Loosely translated that means “Original People.” The Lenape were among the oldest settlers in the Americas. All that stuff you hear about Indian settlement being only a few thousand years old has been debunked. They have been here much, much longer. No one really knows how long.

The Lenape occupied the area of what is now Southern New Jersey (a major tribe being Schey-ic-ibbi) and South Eastern Pennsylvania (a major tribe being Shackamaxon) along the Delaware River (Lena’pewisi’pu.) They were among the first to sell off their tribal lands and assimilate into other tribes, mostly in Canada and Oklahoma. They also don’t call themselves Lenape anymore, but have adopted the name Delaware given to them by the settlers. The original Lenape would be very surprised to be thought of as a nation of tribes, they weren’t that organized.

Dutch, Swedes and later the Quakers were the main settlers in the area. These settlers tried to deal with the Lenape fairly, recognizing the need to purchase the lands they occupied based on the European concept of ownership. But the Lenape concept was not based on individual land ownership; it was more territorial by local village or family. They simply believed they had the right to occupy and hunt the area they had staked out for their tribe or family. As a result of this conceptual difference, at times, settlers had to purchase the same land more than once.

The area tribes routinely fought with each other but not over land. The fighting was more Hatfield-McCoy in nature based on settling a blood score and possibly to raid for food and women. The fighting was usually on a very small scale and over quickly, since these villages were far from large and survival was always the main concern.

What fascinates me is their extreme tolerance for each other. Lenape were forgiving of most all transgressions and the rules were very loose. They had no racial bias. They were also very tolerant parents. Hospitality to visitors was an important part of their beliefs. A visitor could always expect to be offered food and shelter.

The “Algonkian” (yes, that is the correct spelling) language they spoke has been just about completely lost to history. Some words and phrases still remain. Many municipal and place names in NJ and PA are taken from their language, although they have been Anglicized. Some people try to group many tribes together, encompassing very large areas by their common language base. But the Algonkian language variables among the tribes were huge, more akin to speaking different languages.

Very few people probably know that the first Indian Reservation to be established was set up for the Lenape in New Jersey called “Indian Mills.” But they couldn’t make a go of it there, so they sold off their reservation lands. The last full blooded Lenape in New Jersey was a woman named “Indian Ann.” She was well known to the settlers in the area at the time because she traded woven baskets for food and supplies with them. She was well thought of and to this day there is a trail named after her in New Jersey.

The Lenape were Democratic, maybe that’s why I admire them. Maintaining personal freedom while working for the common good of their tribe was at the root of their beliefs, almost sounds like the Constitution. Those are beliefs I could get behind!

Like all people, the Lenape weren’t perfect and it is not my aim to glorify them, but I can’t help believe we could learn a few things from their positive qualities, which is why I chose to speak of them.

If you have children interested in Native American history, there is a book called “The Indians of New Jersey” formerly titled “Dickon Among The Lenapes” by M.R. Harrington. The book combines the fiction of an English Boy being stranded among the Lenape with factual tribal information about the Lenape. It is a good starting point.

Anyway, Wani’shi Ni’tis (That’s Algonkian for “Thank You Friend”) for reading this blog!