Paramus, borough, Bergen County, northeastern New Jersey, near Paterson; incorporated 1922. It is a residential community and a retail center for the surrounding region. Located here are several large retail shopping malls and a community college. Situated on land acquired (1660s) by the Dutch from the Lenni Lenape peoples, Paramus was chiefly a farming center (noted for its celery) until transformed by suburban development after 1945. Its name is derived from a Native American term meaning “land of the wild turkey.” Population 26,474 (1980); 25,067 (1990); 25,737 (2000).
