Western Niantic Tribe
Variant Names
Nehantic, Nayantaquit, the Seaside Indians
Meaning
People of the “point of land on a tidal river” (Trumbull, Indian Place Names, 36)
Location
Between the Thames and Connecticut Rivers, mostly at the mouth of the Connecticut River, around Niantic Bay and Niantic River, and in parts of modern East Lyme and Waterford, Connecticut
Language
Algonquin. Y-dialect similar to the Pequot, Mohegan, Narragansett, and Montauk
Traditional Villages
Niantic, Old Lyme, and Oswegatchie
Inter-Tribal Affiliations
Mohegan, Wangunk, Quinnipiac
