Tappan

Tappan is a name used for a number of related places, peoples, and historical references in the United States. It is also a surname with notable historical bearers. The name traces back to the indigenous Tappan, a group of the Lenape who inhabited the lower Hudson River valley before and during early European colonization, and it was adopted by European settlers for local place names.

Tappan, New York, is a hamlet in Rockland County, located in the town of Orangetown along the Hudson River across from Nyack. The community has colonial-era roots linked to both Dutch settlement and the local Native American Tappan groups. A well-known nearby landmark is the Hudson River crossing formerly called the Tappan Zee Bridge, which was renamed the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge in 2017–2018. The bridge connects Tarrytown to Nyack and sits close to the hamlet of Tappan.

In American history, the surname Tappan is associated with prominent abolitionists Arthur Tappan and Lewis Tappan, who in the early 19th century organized anti-slavery societies and provided financial and organizational support for emancipation efforts.

The toponym and surname continue to appear in local institutions, historical references, and discussions of the Lenape-Tappan heritage in the Hudson River region. The name remains a marker of the area’s Indigenous history as well as its later Dutch and American development.