Cherokee facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids Total population
Sequoyah, creator of the Cherokee syllabary, as painted by Henry Inman, c. 1830
Over 400,000 enrolled citizens
Regions with significant populations
United States Oklahoma, North Carolina, California
Languages
English, Cherokee
Religion
Christianity, Cherokee spiritual beliefs
Related ethnic groups
other Iroquoian peoples

The Cherokee are one of the major Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands in North America. Long ago, their ancestral homeland covered around 40,000 square miles of mountain valleys and rivers. This grand area included parts of modern North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, South Carolina, and Georgia. Today, the Cherokee form the largest tribal group in the United States.

The Cherokee call themselves the Aniyvwiya, which means the "Principal People" in their native tongue. Their heritage features unique traditions, strong communities, rich storytelling, and deep ties to nature. Today, three Cherokee tribes have official ties with the federal government: the Cherokee Nation and the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma, and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in western North Carolina.

Where Did the Cherokee Come From?

The scenic Great Smoky Mountains were the heart of the ancient Cherokee homeland.

Historians and scientists have two main ideas about where the Cherokee originally began. The Cherokee language belongs to the famous Iroquoian languages family. Most other Iroquoian speakers lived far north near the eastern Great Lakes.

An ethnographer named James Mooney gathered many ancient Cherokee stories during the late 19th century. Cherokee elders told him their ancestors had migrated south from the cold Great Lakes. This matches details remembered across generations through Cherokee oral tradition.

Another idea suggests that the Cherokee lived in the southern Appalachian region for thousands of years. In 2007, an anthropologist named Thomas Whyte showed how early languages developed in these mountains. This theory suggests that the groups divided nearly 4,000 years ago right in Appalachia.

Archaeologists have found ancient earthen mounds left by Native American societies throughout this area. Ancestors during the ancient Woodland period built the historic Biltmore Mound near the Swannanoa River. Later groups belonged to the Pisgah phase of the thriving South Appalachian Mississippian culture. These skilled builders created large platform mounds inside towns that served as community centers.

Life in the Ancient Cherokee Homelands

The Cherokee lived in towns spread out along pleasant river valleys and green mountains. Towns were organized into geographic groups known as Lower, Valley, Middle, and Outer settlements. Towns on the other side of the mountains were called the Overhill Cherokee towns.

Lower towns flourished along the clear Keowee River in what is now western South Carolina. The main village in this southern valley was called Keowee. Other major towns stood beside the Tuckasegee River, the Hiwassee River, and the French Broad River.

Farming and Food

Cherokee families were skilled farmers who worked rich soils along the river floodplains. During the ancient Archaic and Woodland Period, they gathered seeds and tended native plants. They grew crops like marsh elder, leafy lambsquarters, colorful pigweed, and tall sunflowers. They also enjoyed sweet wild berries, nuts, and native squash.

During the Mississippian era, Cherokee farmers began growing a hardy crop called eastern flint corn. This crop produced abundant harvests, which allowed towns to expand into organized chiefdom communities. Corn was so important that communities celebrated its growth during the annual Green Corn Ceremony.

People made tools, clay pots, and carved beautiful jewelry such as an engraved shell gorget. Hunters tracked game through the dense forests, especially plentiful white-tailed deer. Rivers supplied fresh fish, which people caught using woven traps and bone hooks.

Early European Encounters

The first Europeans to record meetings with Cherokee ancestors were Spanish explorers. In 1540, an expedition led by Hernando de Soto journeyed through the American Southeast. His explorers recorded a people called the Chalaque living near the Keowee River.

Further west, De Soto visited towns ruled by the large Coosa chiefdom. Historians believe this society was ancestral to the Muscogee Creek people. In 1566, explorer Juan Pardo traveled inland from the Atlantic coast. Pardo visited the large town of Joara near modern Morganton, North Carolina. Pardo's men also met Native leaders near present-day Asheville, North Carolina and at Chiaha.

Traditional Cherokee Society and Culture

Cherokee culture centered on harmony, respect for family, and balance with the natural world. Daily life followed regular seasons of planting, hunting, gathering, and spiritual celebrations.

Cherokee communities viewed the world through two primary symbolic forces: white and red. The color white represented peace, wisdom, reflection, and elder guidance. The color red symbolized energy, youth, action, and defense.

Cherokee healers, known as the didanvwisgi or medicine people, held deep botanical knowledge. They used plants from the forest to make medicines that relieved pain and healed sickness. Elders taught boys and girls respect for the earth and all its creatures.

Cherokee Clans and Family Life

Cherokee society was organized into seven distinct, hereditary family groups called clans. A person's identity, kinship, and family ties were passed down entirely through their mother. This family system is called a matrilineal culture by anthropologists.

Because of this system, women held great power, owned the home, and directed farm work. A mother and her children always belonged to the mother's own specific clan. When a couple married, the husband went to live near his wife's extended family. If a couple decided to separate, the mother kept the home and family possessions.

Clan mothers were deeply respected for their wisdom, life experience, and sound advice. Clan mothers helped select tribal leaders and guided important decisions about peace and daily life. Children learned history, skills, and community values from their uncles, aunts, mothers, and grandparents.

The Cherokee in the 18th Century

A historical Catawba deerskin map showing neighboring nations, including the Cherokee.

During the 1600s, European traders began arriving in Cherokee towns from coastal colonies. English traders from Virginia Colony set up exchanges with the Cherokee before 1700. Traders carried manufactured metal tools, cloth, and glass beads to Cherokee mountain towns. In return, Native hunters traded thousands of valuable deerskins.

Cherokee towns acted independently, and every town made its own local choices. In the early 1700s, the Cherokee had about sixty-four towns and thousands of skilled defenders. However, contact with Europeans brought new diseases like smallpox to the Southeast. Because Native Americans had no natural immunity to these illnesses, epidemics caused tragic loss of life.

The Cherokee became key military and trade partners with the British Crown. In 1712, Cherokee warriors joined forces with the British and the Catawba during the Tuscarora War. They helped defeat the Tuscarora people, who later moved north to join their relatives.

Relationships shifted often as European powers competed for control of land and trade routes. When trade arguments boiled over, the Cherokee joined the Yamasee War in 1716. In 1730, a Scottish adventurer named Sir Alexander Cuming visited the Cherokee town of Nikwasi. He convinced a leader named Moytoy of Tellico to open formal talks with Great Britain.

A diplomatic group that included a young leader named Attakullakulla journeyed across the sea to London. There, Cherokee delegates met King George II of Great Britain and signed the Treaty of Whitehall. In later years, famous Cherokee leaders included Conocotocko I and Chota village councilors.

During the global Seven Years' War, called the French and Indian War in America, alliances fractured. British forces constructed Fort Loudoun in Cherokee territory, but broken promises led to the Anglo-Cherokee War in 1760.

Cherokee leaders visited London in 1765 with Henry Timberlake to establish peace.

To prevent future conflicts between settlers and Native tribes, King George III issued the Royal Proclamation of 1763. This proclamation prohibited colonial settlement west of the Appalachian mountain crest. Despite the proclamation, many colonial settlers moved into Cherokee lands in modern Tennessee anyway.

During the American Revolutionary War, most Cherokee leaders sided with the British Crown to protect their lands. A determined warrior named Dragging Canoe led a group known as the Chickamauga Cherokee. From bases near Chattanooga, Tennessee, Dragging Canoe's forces defended their lands during the Cherokee–American wars. Peace finally arrived when leaders signed the Treaty of Tellico Blockhouse in 1794.

Rapid Change in the 19th Century

Major Ridge was an influential Cherokee leader and council member.

Following the Revolutionary War, the fledgling Cherokee Nation faced growing pressure from the United States. President George Washington urged Native nations to adopt American-style farming, towns, and governments. An official named Benjamin Hawkins helped supply tools like the spinning wheel to Cherokee homes.

Cherokee leaders adapted quickly, blending modern tools with ancient cultural traditions. Leaders like Little Turkey, Black Fox, and Pathkiller organized a national council. A wealthy Cherokee entrepreneur named James Vann established a large trading business in Georgia. His son, Joseph Vann, operated river traffic with a modern steamboat.

During the War of 1812, the Cherokee allied with the United States army. Cherokee soldiers led by Major Ridge fought bravely at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend.

Sequoyah and the Miracle of Written Cherokee

Sequoyah pointing to his remarkable syllabary chart.

One of the greatest achievements in Cherokee history was created by a silversmith named Sequoyah. Although Sequoyah did not speak, read, or write English, he noticed the power of written books. He called these pages "talking leaves" and wanted his own people to have written words.

Sequoyah spent twelve years creating a written system for the Cherokee language. Instead of an alphabet where each letter makes a single sound, he invented a syllabary. In a syllabary, each written character stands for an entire spoken syllable. His brilliant system contained eighty-five symbols representing all the basic sounds of the spoken language.

Sequoyah introduced his syllabary to the Cherokee tribal council in 1821. Within months, thousands of Cherokee children and adults learned to read and write their language fluently. The Cherokee quickly achieved a higher literacy rate than many surrounding frontier settlements.

In 1828, editor Elias Boudinot helped launch the historic Cherokee Phoenix. This publication became the very first Native American newspaper in history. It printed news in parallel columns of English and Cherokee syllabary characters.

The Cherokee Constitution and Capital

In 1825, the Cherokee Nation established a permanent national capital at New Echota, near modern Georgia. Two years later, the nation drafted a written constitution modeled directly on the American republic.

The Cherokee government included three separate branches: executive, legislative, and judicial courts. A respected leader named John Ross was elected as Principal Chief. The nation operated public schools, courts, and a mounted police force called the Lighthorse Guard.

The Removal Era and the Trail of Tears

Principal Chief John Ross led his people through difficult times.

Trouble arose when prospectors found gold on Cherokee land in 1829, starting the Georgia Gold Rush. The state government of Georgia quickly demanded that the federal government remove all Native tribes.

In 1830, President Andrew Jackson signed the controversial Indian Removal Act into law. This law allowed the president to push eastern Native nations west of the Mississippi River.

The Cherokee Nation fought back using American court systems rather than weapons. Chief John Ross worked with top lawyers and argued cases before the highest judges. In the historic case Worcester v. Georgia (1832), Chief Justice John Marshall ruled in favor of the Cherokee. The Supreme Court of the United States declared that Cherokee lands were sovereign and protected by federal treaties.

Tragically, President Jackson and state officials ignored the Supreme Court's ruling. Georgia began giving away Cherokee lands to settlers through a state lottery system.

Divided over what to do, a small group called the Treaty Party felt removal was unavoidable. Led by Major Ridge, John Ridge, and Elias Boudinot, they signed the Treaty of New Echota in 1835. This unauthorized treaty agreed to trade eastern lands for territory in modern Oklahoma.

Chief John Ross gathered over 15,000 signatures from Cherokee citizens protesting the illegal treaty. Despite the huge petition, the United States Senate ratified the treaty by a single vote.

In 1838, President Martin Van Buren ordered General Winfield Scott to enforce the treaty. Soldiers forced over 16,000 Cherokee from their homes and gathered them in temporary camps. Families were then marched overland across 800 miles (1,300 km) through bitter cold and heavy snow.

This tragic march is remembered as the Trail of Tears, known in Cherokee as Nvna Daula Tsvyi. Around 4,000 Cherokee died from starvation, exposure, and sickness during the long trek.

Some Cherokee managed to stay behind in their mountain homeland. A brave man named Tsali helped families find refuge in the rugged mountains of western North Carolina. A trader named William Holland Thomas bought tracts of land for Cherokee people. These families became the ancestors of today's Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

Rebuilding in Indian Territory

Cherokee survivors arrived in Indian Territory and quickly set out to rebuild their national community. Sequoyah helped unite the new arrivals with the "Old Settlers" who had moved west earlier. Leaders established a new capital city at Tahlequah, Oklahoma.

They constructed schoolhouses, churches, courthouses, and family farms across their new territory. In 1851, the nation opened two advanced schools: the Cherokee Female Seminary and a male seminary.

During the American Civil War, the Cherokee divided into opposing sides. General Stand Watie led Confederate Native troops, while Chief John Ross favored the Union. After the war ended, the Cherokee Nation signed the Treaty of 1866. This treaty provided citizenship and land rights to former enslaved workers known as Cherokee Freedmen.

In 1887, Congress passed the Dawes Act, which divided communally held tribal lands into individual plots. The Curtis Act of 1898 closed down tribal courts and civic governments to prepare the land for statehood. In 1907, Indian Territory and Oklahoma Territory combined to form the modern state of Oklahoma.

Cherokee People and Culture Today

Today, Cherokee people maintain rich traditions while leading successful modern communities. Cherokee citizens work as doctors, teachers, scientists, artists, farmers, and business owners.

The Three Federally Recognized Tribes

Today, there are three separate Cherokee tribal governments recognized by the United States:

The Cherokee Nation: Based in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, this is the largest tribe in the country. It has more than 400,000 registered citizens and operates hospitals, businesses, and schools.
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians: Based on the Qualla Boundary in western North Carolina, near the Great Smoky Mountains. They celebrate their heritage through community craft cooperatives, history museums, and cultural dramas.
The United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians: Also centered in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, this tribe preserves traditional ceremonies and community heritage.

Preserving Language, Art, and Community

Cherokee communities work hard to keep their ancestral language alive for future generations. Schools use immersion classrooms where young students learn math, science, and history taught in Cherokee.

Craftspeople continue ancient traditions of making rivercane baskets, clay pottery, carved pipes, and beadwork. The Museum of the Cherokee People in North Carolina preserves historic artifacts and hosts traditional dances. In Oklahoma, the Cherokee Heritage Center recreates traditional villages to teach young visitors about Cherokee history.

The traditional value of Gadugi—working together as a selfless community—remains the heart of Cherokee life today. Cherokee people continue to honor their history, strengthen their sovereign nations, and celebrate their vibrant culture.

Famous Cherokee People

Here are some notable people who are enrolled members of a Cherokee tribe:

Brad Carson, a former U.S. Congressman.
Hawk Littlejohn, a Native American flute-maker and player.
Jay Red Eagle, a Native American flutist.
Jeffrey Vernon Merkey, an American computer scientist.
Jerry Ellis, nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for his book about the Trail of Tears.
Ned Christie, a famous frontiersman.
Redbird Smith, a Cherokee leader.
Wes Studi, an actor.

People with Cherokee Ancestry

Many well-known people have some Cherokee ancestry:

Tori Amos, singer
Kim Basinger, actress
James Brown, singer
Bryan Callen, actor
Cher, singer and actress
Rita Coolidge, singer
Kevin Costner, actor
Johnny Depp, actor
Carmen Electra, actress
Shannon Elizabeth, actress
James Garner, actor
Rebecca Gayheart, actress
Jimi Hendrix, guitarist and singer
Michael Jackson, singer
Val Kilmer, actor
Eartha Kitt, singer
Karen McDougal, model
Demi Moore, actress
Mandy Moore, singer and actress
Charlie Musselwhite, blues harmonica player
Wayne Newton, actor and singer
Joe Nichols, country singer
Chuck Norris, actor and martial artist
Elvis Presley, singer and actor
Nikki Reed, actress
Burt Reynolds, actor
Salli Richardson, actress
Robert Rauschenberg, painter
Ronnie Spector, singer
Tina Turner, singer
Liv Tyler, actress
Steven Tyler, singer of Aerosmith
Michelle White, singer
Tony Joe White, singer

Interesting Facts about Cherokee

Women were very important in Cherokee society. Family lines and property were passed down through the women.
Men did not wear large headdresses full of feathers like some other tribes. They usually wore one or two feathers tied to their heads.
To be considered Cherokee in the past, a person had to have a Cherokee mother. Ancestry did not pass through the father.
Today, many Cherokee dress like other Americans, except for special occasions.
Traditional Cherokee arts included weaving baskets from river cane, gourd art, pottery, and pipe carving. After being forced to Oklahoma, where these materials were not common, Cherokee artists began using beads and cloth in their art.
Cherokee people have many important ceremonial dances, such as the stomp dance and the rain dance.
Traditional Cherokee beliefs included that plants, animals, rivers, and mountains had spiritual powers.
Squash, corn, and beans are known as the "three sisters" and were used in most Cherokee meals.
After Europeans arrived in America, the Cherokee traded beeswax, river cane baskets, and deerskins for weapons and tools.
New Echota, which was once the capital of the Cherokee Nation, was home to the first Cherokee newspaper (the Cherokee Phoenix) and their first Supreme Courthouse. It was empty for over 100 years after the Trail of Tears.