Native American Tribes of Pennsylvania

Welcome to our Pennsylvania State Facts section, part of an educational project designed to provide information about indigenous people in different U.S. states. Follow the links to the right of our tribal map for more information about the language, culture and history of each Pennsylvania tribe, or scroll below the map for Pennsylvania Indian activities including a wordsearch, fact sheets, and words from the Native American languages of Pennsylvania. Feel free to print any of these materials out for classroom use!

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American Indians in Pennsylvania

The original inhabitants of Pennsylvania included:

About Our Maps

The Erie Indians

The Iroquois Indians
(especially the Seneca and Oneida)

The Lenape Indians

The Munsee Indians

The Shawnee Indians

The Susquehannock Indians

Other Indian tribes who migrated into Pennsylvania after Europeans arrived included:

The Nanticoke Indians

There are no federally recognized Indian tribes in Pennsylvania today.

Most Native Americans were forced to leave Pennsylvania during the 1700's, when eastern tribes were being displaced by colonial expansion. These tribes are not extinct, but except for the descendants of Pennsylvania Indians who assimilated into white society, they do not live in Pennsylvania anymore. Most tribes that once were native to Pennsylvania ended up on Indian reservations in Oklahoma. If you click on the link for each tribe above, you can find more information about them.

Non-recognized Indian tribes and communities in Pennsylvania include:

Eastern Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania:
21 Cedar Lane
Mountville, PA 17554

Teaching and learning activities about Pennsylvania Native Americans:

Feel free to print these out to use at school!

Pennsylvania Tribes Word Search: Printable puzzle hiding the names of Pennsylvania's Indian tribes.

Pennsylvania Language Greetings: Learn to say "hello" in several Native Pennsylvania languages.

Pennsylvania Native Animals: Learn the Native American names of Pennsylvania animals.

Pennsylvania Indian Facts for Kids: Answers to frequently asked questions about the tribes of Pennsylvania.
We currently have pages for the Lenape, Shawnee, Iroquois, Munsee, and Nanticoke tribes.

Recommended books about Pennsylvania Native Americans
(Our organization earns a commission from any book bought through these links)

Invisible Indians: Native Americans in Pennsylvania:
Interesting book about the culture and history of contemporary Pennsylvania Native Americans.

Pennsylvania Indians:
Simple book introducing Pennsylvania's Native American history and culture to kids.

Indians in Pennsylvania:
In-depth anthropological study of Pennsylvania's Indian tribes, well-written and interesting reading.

Encyclopedia of Pennsylvania Indians:
Thorough reference book about the Native American tribes of Pennsylvania.

History of the Indian Villages and Place Names in Pennsylvania:
The native etymology of present-day place-names in Pennsylvania.

Other resources about American Indian history, culture and society in Pennsylvania state:

Indians of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley:
Information and links on the Indian tribes of Pennsylvania.