An Amerindian community living in Suriname in the early colonial era. In 1661, Major John Scott said that there were about 1200 Sapoyes families along the Courantyne River in Suriname. The Courantyne River is the longest river in Suriname. It lies West of Paramaribo, and today it forms the border between Guyana and Suriname. Some people believe that the Sapoyes (also called Napoyes in colonial documents) were an Arawak tribe.