Nashaway River
/ˈnæʃəweɪ ˈrɪvər/noun
A historical name for the Nashua River in Massachusetts, associated with the Nashaway people of the region.
Did you know?Nashaway was also the name used for an Indigenous people of central Massachusetts, while the exact meaning of the name remains uncertain because the source language was poorly documented.
Etymological Timeline
Before the 17th Century
Nipmuc
Nashaway
“Indigenous place and people-name; its precise literal translation is uncertain.”
17th Century
English colonial records
Nashaway
“Name applied to the Indigenous Nashaway people and to the river region they inhabited.”
17th Century
English
Nashaway River
“Colonial English name for the river now generally called the Nashua River.”
18th Century
English
Nashua River
“A shortened or variant form that increasingly became standard in Massachusetts usage.”
Modern English
English
Nashaway River
“Historical and alternate name for the Nashua River in central Massachusetts.”