{"id":12725,"date":"2023-10-06T06:10:10","date_gmt":"2023-10-06T05:10:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aboutriver.com\/?p=12725"},"modified":"2023-10-06T06:10:10","modified_gmt":"2023-10-06T05:10:10","slug":"what-name-did-he-use-for-the-mississippi-river","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aboutriver.com\/what-name-did-he-use-for-the-mississippi-river\/","title":{"rendered":"What Name Did He Use For The Mississippi River"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Mississippi River is one of the oldest and most iconic rivers on the continent, with a legacy that has endured since its discovery by European settlers in the 1600s. The first European to lay eyes on the Mississippi, Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, gave the river its modern-day name as a means of honoring his king and benefactor, Louis XIV of France. But what many might not know is that, prior to its modern name, the river was known by a number of other titles. <\/p>\n

The first known title given to the Mississippi was that of the Anishinaabe, a group of Native Americans living in the area, who referred to the river as “Messipi”. This term was later adapted by French explorers and transformed into the name “Mississippi”. Prior to that, the region was home to a number of other tribes, including the Osage, Caddo, Chickasaw and Tunica, all of who had their own distinct names for the river.<\/p>\n

The French explorer Marquette was the first to use the term “Mississippi” to describe the river in his 1673 journals, although he only used the term to refer to its tributaries. It wasn’t until 1718 that the name was officially applied to the entire river, when Bienville applied the term “Mississippi” to its upper reaches. The usage of this name continued to spread as the river was explored, and it remains the name used today.<\/p>\n

The stories behind this name are steeped in history, but one thing that remains certain is that its usage is reflective of a larger moment in history. The acceptance of the name “Mississippi” reflects the gradual acknowledgment and incorporation of Native American culture by the French explorers. Now, centuries later, the use of this name is symbolic of the historical bonds between Native Americans and French settlers.<\/p>\n