The name "Henlopen" probably is derived from that of Thijmen Jacobsz Hinlopen (1572–1637), a merchant in Amsterdam in the Netherlands.
Two of the six business partners of the ships Blijde Boodschap and Bever which focused on exploration and trade in the Zuidt Rivier or Delaware River, were Thijmen Jacobsz Hinlopen and Samuel Godijn.