Indigenous People of New Hampshire: The Abenaki

The Abenaki (Alnôbak — “People of the Dawn Land”) are the original inhabitants of the land now called New Hampshire, along with parts of Vermont, Maine, Massachusetts, and Quebec.

Who They Are

• Language family: Algonquian (related to Mi’kmaq, Maliseet, Penobscot, Western Abenaki dialects).
• Bands: Multiple — Pennacook (Merrimack Valley), Ossipee, Pequawket, Sokoki, Cowasuck, Missisquoi.
• Territory: Ndakinna (“Our Land”) — White Mountains to Lake Champlain, Connecticut River to Atlantic.

Culture & Economy

• Seasonal round: Coastal fishing/clamming (summer), inland hunting/trapping (winter), agriculture (corn, beans, squash — “Three Sisters”) in river intervals.
• Trade: Wampum, furs, maple sugar, copper — networks to Great Lakes & coast.
• Spirituality: Animistic; Gluskabe (cultural hero), seasonal ceremonies.

Colonial Impact

• Disease: 1616–19 pandemic (likely leptospirosis) killed ~75–90%.
• War: King Philip’s War (1675–76), Dummer’s War (1720s) — displacement, refugee mergers.
• Treaties: Often violated; no reservation established in NH until 1970s (federal recognition denied; state recognition 2010s for some bands).

Today

• Population: ~3,000 self-identified Abenaki in NH/VT (Census); ~12,000 in Quebec (Odanak, Wôlinak — federally recognized).
• Revitalization: Language nests, cultural camps, basketry (ash/sweetgrass), maple traditions.
• Place names: Connecticut, Merrimack, Piscataqua, Winnipesaukee, Monadnock — all Abenaki.

The Abenaki remain—Alnôbak wdahôzi (“The People of the Dawn Land are still here”).