Kahnawake surnames facts for kids

The Mohawk Nation community of Kahnawake is located south of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It's a place with a rich history, and its residents have family names from different backgrounds, including Mohawk, French, Scots, and English. This mix shows how people from different cultures came together over time. For example, some European children were adopted into the community, and people from Kahnawake married settlers from nearby colonial villages.

Kahnawake is located along the St. Lawrence River, near the St-Louis rapids. Its story began in 1667 as a Jesuit settlement called Mission Saint-François-Xavier du Sault-Saint-Louis. The very first mission was in what is now La Prairie and was called Kentake by its first Oneida settlers.

The Story of Kahnawake

During the 1670s, the Catholic mission grew quickly. Many Mohawk families arrived, and they soon became the largest group there. The mission moved four times before settling in its current spot in 1716. This new location was named Kahnawake, which means "at the rapids" in the Mohawk language. People from Kahnawake call themselves Kahnawakehro:non.

Some families from Kahnawake later helped start Akwesasne (also known as the St. Regis Reservation), which is located upriver and crosses into New York State. Their descendants also moved to the community of Kanesatake.

Kahnawake's Family Names: A Rich History

Many of Kahnawake's family names have European or North American roots. This happened because people were adopted into families or married people from different backgrounds. Father Forbes first wrote about the origins of some of these names in 1899. Here's a look at some common surnames in Kahnawake and their interesting stories.

Beauvais

The first Beauvais was André Karhaton. He married Marie-Anne Kahenratas before 1743. André was a young man from the Beauvais family in La Prairie who was adopted and grew up in Kahnawake.

Canadien

This name comes from the wife of Charles Tehosteroton. She was the granddaughter of a person known as Big John Canadian.

Curotte

The name Curotte comes from the French names Cureau or Curot. Pierre Curotte Taronhiorens married Marie-Joseph Karenhatirontha before 1748. Pierre's background is not fully clear.

D'Ailleboust

This name comes from Ignace Soteriioskon dit D'Ailleboust. He was born around 1733 and passed away in 1797. His parents were Catherine Kawennakaion and Antoine D'Ailleboust, a resident of La Prairie. Today, this name is often spelled Diabo.

De La Ronde

This name comes from Paul Niioherasha. He was the son of Charles-François Denys de la Ronde Thibaudière, a voyageur (a fur trader), and Magdeleine Pemadjisoanokwe from Kanesatake. Their family history includes Simon and Jeanne Dubreuil, who came to Canada in 1651. Today, the name is spelled Delaronde or Laronde.

De Lorimier

Claude-Nicolas-Guillaume de Lorimier was a French-Canadian officer and a wealthy landowner in Kahnawake. He was born in Lachine in 1744. He led Native troops during the Seven Years' War and the American Revolution. In 1783, he married Marie-Louise Schuyler, an Iroquois (likely Mohawk) woman, and they moved to Kahnawake. He later married Anne Skaouennetsi in 1801 and had four children. He died in Kahnawake in 1825. His sons later sold their properties and moved elsewhere.

Delisle

This name comes from Jacques Tewennitashen. He was born around 1746 and passed away in 1826. It is said that he was the son of an English prisoner brought to Kahnawake. In 1766, he married Catherine Skawenniooha from Kahnawake.

Giasson

Ignace Giasson married Marie-Louise de Sacquespée in January 1792 in Montréal. They had two sons. Ignace Jr. married Marie Pollard and lived in Châteauguay. Charles-Gédéon married Agathe McComber, whose mother was Charlotte Tsionnonna from Kahnawake. Marie-Angélique, Ignace (senior)'s daughter, became the second wife of Jarvis McComber in 1812.

Hill

Jacob Hill, later known as Kannetakon, was brought to Kahnawake as a captive after an expedition to Schenectady. He married Marie Anastasie Konkaientha in 1766. Some of his descendants later took the surname JACOB.

La Saussaye

Charles, also known as Wanoronk, first appears in records in 1783. He is believed to be a Huron from Lorette, Manitoba, and the son of Oskwesannete and Marie.

Mailloux

Amable Mailloux married Félicité Rollin, a French-Canadian woman, in Châteauguay in 1793. Their three sons, François-Xavier Tiorateken, Louis Onokohte, and Pierre Ohahakehte, were raised by Antoine Otes dit Zacharie, a Kahnawake resident. They married local Native women. Today, the name is spelled Mayo or Myiow.

McComber

This name comes from Jarvis (Gervais, Gervase) McComber. He was the son of Constant McComber and Mary Earle. Around 1796, at 16 years old, he left Massachusetts and moved to Kahnawake by himself. He was hired and later adopted by Thomas Arakwente. After traveling to the Great Lakes, he married Arakwente's daughter and decided to stay in Kahnawake. In 1805, he became a Catholic. He owned a lot of land and worked as a military officer and interpreter. He married three times and had a total of twenty-eight children. He passed away in 1866 at 95 years old.

McGregor

Pierre Anatorenha McGregor and his sister Marie were captured and brought to Montreal and Kahnawake. They were adopted by a Mohawk family in Kahnawake.

Montour

Andre Satsienhowane, whose name means "He Makes a Big Fire," was born in 1678 and died in 1776. He married Marie Anne Kaherine Corn Stack, who died in 1765. A Captain Andrew Montour, who was Huron French, worked as an interpreter for Virginia and served in the Braddock Expedition of 1755.

Merry or Murray

Trueman, also known as Sotsitsionwane, was the son of Ephraim and Diane Merry from Boston. He became a Catholic and was baptized as Pierre in 1805. He married Marie Saiorio in 1805, Marie Tikos in 1838, and Marie Tsiawenhatie in 1840.

Monique

Louis Onwaskannha was born in 1760 and died in 1810. He married Dorothee Kariwaienhne. He was a Huron from Lorette, Manitoba who moved to Kahnawake in the early 1800s.

Nicholas-Nicolas

The name Tekanatokin became Nicholas. For example, in the 1901 census, Francois-Xavier Nicolas, 46, was listed. In the 1891 census, he was Xavier Tekanatoken, 28. This shows how names changed over time in official records.

Philippe

Pierre Sonorese Philippe was born around 1733 and died in 1786. He married Anna Atsiaha around 1755. Not much is known about him, but he might have been from the United States. Today, the name is spelled Philip.

Rice

Silas and Timothy Rice were English children captured on August 8, 1704, during a raid in Marlborough, Massachusetts. They were taken to Kahnawake, where they were adopted by Mohawk families and became Catholics. Silas, who was nine, was named Thanhohorens and Jacques. He lived to be 90. Timothy, who was seven, was named Oseronhokion and later became a chief. Both married local Mohawk women. Their cousins, Ashur and Adonijah Rice, were also captured. Adonijah grew up and married in Kahnawake, while Ashur was returned to his father after four years.

Simon

In the 1901 census, Michel Simon, 55, was listed. In earlier censuses, he was Michel Anaietha. This shows how names changed in records. The name has appeared in different forms in church records and censuses, such as Simon-Anaietha, Anayehta, and Onehieta.

Stacey

John Aionwatha Stacey, an English boy, was captured near Albany around 1755 during the Seven Years' War. He was brought to Kahnawake with Jacob Hill and adopted by the Mohawk. He married three times and had fourteen children.

Tarbell

John and Zachary Tarbell were English brothers captured as boys in June 1707 during Queen Anne's War. They were taken to Kahnawake, adopted by Mohawk families, and became Catholic. They also received Mohawk names. Their older sister Sarah joined a religious order. As adults, the brothers married daughters of Mohawk chiefs, worked as fur traders, and became chiefs themselves. In the 1750s, they led about 30 families to start the new community of Akwesasne. Tarbell descendants are numerous in both Kahnawake and Akwesasne today.

Williams

Eunice Williams, the daughter of a minister, was captured during a raid on Deerfield, Massachusetts, on February 28, 1704. Eunice was seven years old. She was taken to Montreal and then to the Mohawk village of Kahnawake. She was adopted by a Mohawk family, became a Catholic, and was renamed Marguerite (and also received the Mohawk name Kanenstenhawi). She married Francois, a Mohawk man in Kahnawake. Eunice fully became part of the Mohawk community and chose to stay there, even visiting her family in Massachusetts but always returning to Kahnawake. She passed away in 1785 at 89 years old. The Williams name in Kahnawake and Kanesatake comes from her and her children.

Zacharie

Otes Zacharie was a retired Huron chief married to a Kahnawake woman named Charlotte. They had two sons: Antoine Otes, also known as Aientas or Tekaronhonte, and Michel Kaniatariio.