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From the first inhabitants who migrated into the Susquehanna River area thousands of years ago to the period of European settlement in the 1600s to1800s, many American Indian languages were spoken by diverse tribes who made the area their home or passed through on trade or exploratory ventures. Although most early languages are dead, their legacy lives on in the Susquehanna Valley through place names from Iroquoian and Algonquian languages once spoken in the area. This presentation will cover 17th century European contact with the region’s early inhabitants and how those contacts shaped place names we take for granted in York and Lancaster Counties. Highlighting this will be origins and meanings of such names as Susquehanna, Codorus, Chickies, Turkey Hill, Conewago, Accomac, Tuckahoe, Conestoga.  Charles “Chip” Kauffman is an adjunct faculty member at York College of Pennsylvania where he teaches languages and language-related courses. He is a retired certified U.S. Government linguist and author of various articles on languages and linguistics.