What is "massachusett"

The Massachusett are a Native American people who historically lived in areas surrounding Massachusetts Bay, as well as northeast and southern Massachusetts in what is now the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, including present-day Greater Boston. Tribal members spoke the Massachusett language, which is part of the Algonquian language family. The present-day U.S state of Massachusetts is named after the tribe.

The name Massachusett means “people of the great hills”, referring to the Blue Hills south of Boston Harbor.

As one of the first groups of indigenous American peoples to encounter English colonists, the Massachusett experienced a rapid decline in population in the 17th and 18th centuries due to new infectious diseases. Descendants of the Massachusett continue to inhabit the Greater Boston area, but they are not a federally recognized tribe.