About

Mayis /Mah yees/

Mayis means "a path; to go on" in Renape /deh nah pea/. The Renape dialect, as well as the Nanticoke and the Unami Lenape were dialects of the Algonquian language family spoken historically on Maryland’s Delmarva Peninsula. Mayis is a web resource created as a path to guide researchers to records in the Maryland State Archives (MSA) about the Indigenous peoples of the Chesapeake Bay region. Our team designed this site to help to shine a light on this significant and complicated history of colonization and conflict. It is our hope that American Indians of the twenty-first century and their allies will use this tool to better educate all of us about the first people living in the region (before Europeans arrived).

Dedication

This website is dedicated to the memory of archivist Phebe Robinson Jacobsen (1922-2000), who deeply respected the Indigenous peoples whose history is interconnected with the State of Maryland. Phebe’s research files formed the foundation of this web resource, leaving a legacy for archivists to follow. She committed herself to helping all people of all backgrounds find their ancestry. Over the course of her Archives career, she spent countless hours researching historic records for evidence concerning the Native people of the Chesapeake. Later, in her retirement, Phebe served as a commissioner on the Maryland Commission on Indian Affairs, which advocates for the needs of the Indigenous communities in Maryland.

Thanks

Thank you to the volunteer researchers who have made this resource possible: Iris Afantchao, Natalie DeMuro, William H. Frederick III, Elenora Hyde, Theana Kastens, Rachael Kirschenmann, Kitri Post, Felipe Tassara, and C. S. Treadwell. Thank you also to MSA Staff.

2023-2024 MHAA grant-funded interns: Autumn Powell (Afro-Diné) and Ame Schimminger

The Mayis audio recording above was generously donated by Drew Shuptar-Rayvis, Pekatawas MaKaTaWai’U , Black Corn, Cultural Ambassador of the Pocomoke Indian Nation.