Nashaway Indians
/ˈnæʃəweɪ ˈɪndiənz/noun
A historical name for an Indigenous Algonquian-speaking group associated with the Nashaway River region of central Massachusetts.
Did you know?“Nashaway” is closely associated with the Nashua River and Nashua, New Hampshire, although popular translations such as “beautiful river with a pebbly bottom” are not universally accepted by linguists.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-contact period
Algonquian
Nashaway
“An Indigenous place-name used for the Nashaway people and the river region they inhabited; its precise original meaning remains debated.”
17th Century
English colonial records
Nashaway
“A recorded name for an Indigenous community in central Massachusetts, particularly around the Nashaway River.”
17th Century
English
Nashaway Indians
“A colonial English designation for the Nashaway people; “Indians” reflects historical European terminology rather than the community’s own original name.”
18th Century
English
Nashua
“A shortened or altered form of Nashaway preserved in colonial place-names, including the Nashua River.”
Modern English
English
Nashaway Indians
“A historical ethnonym used in scholarship and local history, often discussed in relation to the broader Nipmuc cultural and political world.”
Explore more surprising origins