Nacotchtank

Nacotchtank
Total population
Extinct as a tribe, merged with the Piscataway
Regions with significant populations
Washington, D.C.
Languages
Piscataway
Religion
Native American religion
Related ethnic groups
Piscataway

The Nacotchtank, also Anacostine,[1] were an Algonquian Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands.

During the 17th century, the Nacotchtank resided within the present-day borders of Washington, D.C., along the intersection of the Potomac and Anacostia rivers.[2]

The Nacotchtank spoke Piscataway, a variant of the Algonquian subfamily spoken by many tribes along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean.[3] This was due to close association and tribute with the nearby Piscataway chiefdom, whose tayac (grand chief) ruled over a loose confederacy of tribes in Southern Maryland from the village of Moyaone to the south.[4][5]

As the neighboring Maryland colony sought land for tobacco plantations, the Nacotchtank were encroached upon and forcibly removed.[5] They were last recorded in the late 1600s to have taken refuge on nearby Theodore Roosevelt Island located in the Potomac River.[6] Over time, the small population that was left behind after battle and disease was absorbed into the Piscataway.[6]

In his 1608 expedition, English explorer John Smith noted the prosperity of the Nacotchtank and their great supply of various resources.[7] Various pieces of art and other cultural artifacts, including hair combs, pendants, pottery, and dog bones, have been found in excavations throughout Washington, D.C., on Nacotchtank territory.[8]

  1. ^ Burr, Charles R. (1920). "A Brief History of Anacostia, Its Name, Origin and Progress". Records of the Columbia Historical Society, Washington, D.C. 23: 168. ISSN 0897-9049. JSTOR 40067143. Retrieved 2020-10-11.
  2. ^ "Native Peoples of Washington, DC (U.S. National Park Service)". National Park Service. Retrieved 2020-10-11.
  3. ^ Mithun, Marianne (2001-06-07). The Languages of Native North America. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 1. ISBN 978-0-521-29875-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  4. ^ Herman, Doug (2018-07-04). "American Indians of Washington, D.C., and the Chesapeake". American Association of Geographers. Retrieved 2020-10-19.
  5. ^ a b "Before the White House". The White House Historical Association. Retrieved 2020-02-22.
  6. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference :26 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Mooney, James (1889). "Indian Tribes of the District of Columbia". American Anthropologist. The Aborigines of the District of Columbia and the Lower Potomac - A Symposium, under the Direction of the Vice President of Section D. 2 (3): 259. ISSN 0002-7294. JSTOR 658373. Retrieved 2020-10-11.
  8. ^ Hedgpeth, Dana. "A Native American tribe once called D.C. home. It's had no living members for centuries". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2020-10-11.