Definition of "samp"

I asked him to give me a little of his Broth, or Water they [Horses feet] were boiling in; he took a dish, and gave me one spoonful of Samp, and bid me take as much of the Broth as I would.

1675, The Captivity of Mary Rowlandson, included in The Portable North American Indian Reader, New York: Penguin Books, 1977, page 341

The meal, coarse or fine, is then used for samps, mushes, or batters, and cakes, thick or thin, and of many varieties and degrees of wholesomeness.

1882, The Atlantic Monthly, volume 50, page 549

'You kids have everything but you don't appreciate it. Mom must cook you beans and samps. Do you hear? Just beans and samps. That's all. Beans and samps.'

1975, Sheila Roberts, Outside Life's Feast: Short Stories, page 18

We remained in class until 12.45, and then had a lunch of samp, sour milk and beans, seldom meat.

1994, Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom, Abacus, published 2010, page 44

Abigail taught her the use of the samp mortar. Samp was corn broken into coarse grains and boiled as porridge.

2004, Louise Cabral, A Pageant of Shadows, page 327

In the area of cuisine, the Xhosa have contributed many corn recipes, most famously samp and beans (umngqusho).

2005, Fran Osseo-Asare, Food Culture in Sub-Saharan Africa, page 74