Home › Glossary › Letter D

Delawa

Mythology
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

An alternate spelling for the Lenape (Delaware) people, a Native American tribe with rich oral traditions and cosmology.

Detailed Definition
Delawa is an alternate spelling of Lenape, the original people of the Delaware River valley. Their myths include the Great Turtle, Mask Face, and the origin of tobacco. In poetry, Delawa symbolizes Eastern Woodlands cosmology, displacement, and treaty history. Poets use it to honor ancestral lands, linguistic revival, and the enduring legacy of the Haudenosaunee’s “Grandfather” nation.
Example
Example in poetry:
Delawa, referencing the Lenape (Delaware) people, appears in poetry as the rustle of sassafras leaves in ancestral groves; A verse uses “Delawa” to mourn displacement while affirming return through language revival; Contemporary poets invoke Delawa cosmology to map stars once used for navigation; In lyrical form, Delawa grandmothers stir stews with stories that thicken the broth; Delawa identity becomes a river in verse—flowing through Pennsylvania concrete yet unchanged.
Additional Notes
Delawa is an alternate spelling of Lenape (Delaware), whose mythology includes the creator Kishelemukong, the trickster Nanapush, and the origin of the turtle island—poets referencing Delawa stories should use the tribe’s preferred name (Lenape) and engage with their cosmology as a living tradition, not a historical artifact.
Also Known As
Lenape Delaware
Skip to main content