The Wampanoag are an Algonquian-speaking Indigenous group. In the 17th century they occupied large parts of present-day Rhode Island and Massachusetts, including Martha’s Vineyard and nearby islands. They maintained peaceful relations with the Pilgrims for some 50 years after the latter’s arrival in the region. That ended with the outbreak of King Philip’s War, a conflict that devastated Wampanoag communities.
In the modern day there are two federally recognized Wampanoag tribes in the United States, and more than 8,000 Americans identify as having Wampanoag ancestry.