Lenape

We are the Lenape, and our name means the 'Original People.' For thousands of years, our home has been a vast and beautiful land that we call Lenapehoking, which means 'land of the Lenape.' This homeland stretched across what is now known as Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, and parts of New York. The heart of Lenapehoking was the Delaware River Valley, a place rich with forests, streams, and wildlife. The land gave us everything we needed to live, and we cared for it in return. Our lives were woven into the rhythm of the seasons, and our communities were strong and organized.

Our society was built around our families and our clans. Every Lenape person belonged to one of three main clans: the Turtle, the Turkey, or the Wolf. These clans were like large, extended families, and they helped decide who you could marry and what your responsibilities were within the community. Importantly, we traced our family lines through our mothers. This means that children belonged to their mother’s clan, and leadership and family ties passed down through the women in our families. We lived in villages, sometimes in homes called longhouses, which were large enough for several families to share. Our way of life was balanced; we were skilled farmers who grew corn, beans, and squash, which we call the 'Three Sisters.' We were also expert hunters in the forests and fishers in the rivers, making sure our families had plenty to eat.

In the 1600s, our world began to change when European settlers arrived in Lenapehoking. At first, we traded with the newcomers, sharing our knowledge of the land. But soon, conflicts started to grow. A major reason for this was that we had very different ideas about land. For us, the land was something to be shared by everyone and cared for, not something that a single person could own forever. The Europeans believed that land could be bought and sold like an object. These different views led to many misunderstandings and broken promises that cost us our homes.

A clear example of how our land was taken unfairly was an event in 1737 called the Walking Purchase. Through a dishonest agreement, a huge piece of our territory was taken from us. As the years went on, the pressure to leave our homeland grew stronger. In 1778, during the American Revolution, our leaders signed the Treaty of Fort Pitt with the new United States. It was the very first treaty between the United States and any Native nation. We hoped this treaty would protect our remaining land and our people, but that hope did not last. The promises made to us were not kept, and this treaty marked the beginning of our forced removal from Lenapehoking.

Being forced to leave our ancestral land was a long and difficult journey. Over many years, we were pushed westward, again and again. Our communities were broken apart and scattered across North America. Despite these great challenges and the pain of losing our home, we held onto our culture and our identity. We showed great resilience and found the strength to survive and build new lives in new places far from the Delaware River Valley.

Today, we are still here, and our Lenape culture is thriving. Our people live in many places, and we have several main Lenape nations, including the Delaware Tribe of Indians and the Delaware Nation in Oklahoma, the Stockbridge-Munsee Community in Wisconsin, and communities in Canada. We are working hard to keep our culture strong for future generations. We are reviving our language through special programs, holding traditional ceremonies that connect us to our ancestors, and teaching our children the important stories and history of the Lenape people. We carry the spirit of our ancestors with us as we continue our journey as the Original People.