What were the Native Americans names when the inhabitant Massachusetts?

Answer 1

The exact answer to this question is very complex but generally speaking Indian tribes were part of a loose hierarchical grouping and were distinguished by the primary language they spoke as well as their location.

Prior to European contact, Massachusetts primarily had three Native American tribes; the Wampanoag's lived in the east; the Mohegan's lived in much of the central part of the state and the Mahican's (also referenced as the Mohican's) dominated the area west of the Connecticut river. These three Massachusetts tribes spoke unique languages based on the Algonquin Language and thus are often considered to be part of the much larger Algonquian tribe which covered the entire region of what is now the northeastern U.S.

The Wampanoag's are the only Massachusetts' tribe remaining that is recognized by the U.S. Federal government. The name "Massachuset" comes from the Wampanoag's with a meaning of "by the range of hills"

It is important to note that each of the three primary tribes in Massachusetts had a number of sub-tribes with their own names and "dialects". Also, it was very common for members of a tribe to learn the languages of other tribes which even further complicated their association with any specific single tribe and frequently resulted in yet another lower layer of tribes in the hierarchical structure.