{"id":12090,"date":"2023-12-09T20:55:11","date_gmt":"2023-12-09T19:55:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aboutriver.com\/?p=12090"},"modified":"2023-12-09T20:55:11","modified_gmt":"2023-12-09T19:55:11","slug":"who-named-the-mississippi-river","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aboutriver.com\/who-named-the-mississippi-river\/","title":{"rendered":"Who Named The Mississippi River"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The History Of The Mississippi River <\/h2>\n

The Mississippi River, located near the American Midwest, is one of the most famous rivers on the planet. It is the longest river within the Americas and it has captivated the attention of civilizations, entrepreneurs, adventurers, and environmentalists since its discovery. From the ancient Louisiana natives to modern day regulators, the Mississippi River has been naively referred to as “Old Man river” and “The Father of Waters”. But who exactly named the Mississippi River?<\/p>\n

The Mississippi River was discovered around 1500-1600 by early Europeans. The river was first referred to by the ancient French explorer Jacques Cartier as Rivière des Pontchartrain. This name was eventually shortened to the current name of Mississippi, derived from the misstagging of an indigenous North American tribe. The remaining sources of the name are muddy, with some claiming that it is an Ojibwe term and others saying it is a named derived from the French.<\/p>\n

The Mississippi’s Indigenous tribe at the time were the Moingwena or “People of the Great River”. The name of the great river was known as Me-Sipi amongst the Moingwena tribe long before European settlers arrived. In 1673, Father Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet were the first Europeans to explore the Mississippi River. They labeled the great river as “Rivière des Messipi”, written on a document dated in 1681. <\/p>\n

The Mississippi is also known as the Fourth River int the Bible. This phrase came from the words of pioneer and explorer Father Marquette roughly translated as “There are four great rivers which traverse this country”. This phrase can be found in Marquette’s Journey to Wisconsin in 1673.<\/p>\n

The Mississippi River As A Cultural Icon <\/h2>\n