 | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| defunct | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Massachusetts,Rhode Island | |
| Languages | |
| Wampanoag | |
| Religion | |
| Indigenous religion, Christianity | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| otherWampanoag people |
ThePokanoket (also spelledPakanokick[1]) are a group ofWampanoag people and the village governed byMassasoit (c. 1581–1661), chiefsachem of theWampanoag people.
The village was located on what is now called Mount Hope inBristol, Rhode Island. Later the term Pokanoket broadened to refer to the peoples and lands governed by Massasoit and his successors,[1] which were part of theWampanoag people in what is nowRhode Island andMassachusetts.
Pokanoket is also spelledPauquunaukit, and translates as "land at the clearing" from theMassachusett.[citation needed]
At the time of the pilgrims' arrival in Plymouth, the realm of Pokanoket included parts of Rhode Island and much of southeastern Massachusetts.[2] European accounts of Pokanoket social life noted the political authority of the Massasoit (Great Leader).
The realm of the Pokanoket was extensive and known to the Pilgrims before they arrived atPlymouth, Massachusetts on theMayflower in 1620.William Bradford wrote that he had received before the Pilgrims sailed: "The Pokanokets, which live to the west of Plymouth, bear an inveterate malice to the English, and are of more strength than all the savages from there toPenobscot. Their desire of revenge was occasioned by an English man who, having many of them on board, made a great slaughter with their murderers and small shot, when (as they say) they offered no injury on their part."
The area in Rhode Island consisting of Bristol, Barrington, and Warren (the latter named Sowams by the natives) was the main settlement of the Pokanoket when the Pilgrims arrived. Bradford had been told that the land of the Pokanoket had "the richest soil, and much open ground fit for English grain".[3]
Giovanni da Verrazzano sailed intoNarragansett Bay in 1524, and people appeared on the shores, most likely Pokanokets. The navigator's recorded latitude of 41°40′ north corresponds toMount Hope Bay, where the seat of the Pokanoket is located. Verrazzano wrote of these Rhode Island Native Americans whom he encountered: "These people are the most beautiful and have the most civil customs we have found on this voyage."[4][5]
The Pilgrims lost more than half of their people due to sickness and starvation over the first winter. The Pokanoket taught them how to plant crops and live in this country. Despite the fears initially felt by the Pilgrims, the Pokanoket quickly made a pact of peace with the new settlers. Bradford referred to the Pokanoket leaderOusamequin as "their great Sachem, calledMassasoit". Ousamequin was succeeded as Great Leader of the Pokanoket by his sons, first byWamsutta, (also known as Alexander), and then byMetacomet (also known as Philip), who was killed in theKing Philip's War (1675–76).
Natick, sometimes referred to as Pokanoket, is thedialect ofMassachusett spoken among the Pokanoket.[6]
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| Sachem | From | To |
|---|---|---|
| Massasoit Wasanegin | 1525 | 1577 |
| Massasoit Ousamequin | 1581 | 1661 |
| MassasoitWamsutta (English name "Alexander") | 1661 | 1662 |
| MassasoitMetacomet (English name "Philip") | 1662 | 1676 |
The Pokanoket's conceded territory shown in the map featured here is a reconstruction of Pokanoket ancestral boundaries based on a political and topographical map from 1895, which itself drew on 17th-century topographical descriptions of political borders.
Today, the area includes cities and towns on the Massachusetts and Rhode Island border such as Bristol, Warren, Barrington, East Providence, Seekonk, Rehoboth, Attleboro, Cumberland, North Attleboro, Norton, Mansfield, Dighton, and Somerset.
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Today, descendants from the Pokanoket village are part of theMashpee Wampanoag Tribe, afederally recognized tribe inMassachusetts.[7]
At least twounrecognized organizations, thePocasset Wampanoag Tribe of the Pokanoket Nation[7] and thePokanoket Nation[8] claim to descend from the Pokanoket people. They are notfederally recognized;[9]state-recognized by Rhode Island, Massachusetts, or any other state;[10] or recognized byWampanoag tribes.[11] The town ofWarren, Rhode Island, lists aland acknowledgment on a town sign.[12]