Cherokee

CHEROKEE

CHEROKEE, an American Indian tribe that, at the time of European contact, controlled a large area of what is now the southeastern United States. Until the later part of the eighteenth century, Cherokee lands included portions of the current states of Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, North and South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama. Cherokees are thought to have relocated to that area from the Great Lakes region centuries before contact with Europeans, and their language is part of the Iroquian langauge

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family. Although "Cherokee" probably comes from the Choctaw word meaning "people of the caves," Cherokees have often referred to themselves as Ani-yun-wiya, "real people."

Cherokee society was organized into seven matrilineal clans that structured their daily lives in villages along rivers. Each village had a red chief, who was associated with war and games, and a white chief, who was responsible for daily matters, such as farming, legal and clan disputes, and domestic issues.

The Cherokee economy was based on agriculture, hunting, and fishing. Tasks were differentiated by gender, with women responsible for agriculture and the distribution of food, and men engaged in hunting and gathering. After contact, trade with Europeans formed a significant part of the Cherokee economy.

During the eighteenth century, the Cherokee population was reduced by disease and warfare, and treaties with the English significantly decreased their landholdings. Cherokees fought in numerous military conflicts, including the Cherokee War against the British and the American Revolution, in which they fought against the rebels. Cherokees were known as powerful allies, and they attempted to use warfare to their benefit, siding with or against colonists when they perceived it to help their strategic position.

By the nineteenth century, Cherokee society was becoming more diverse. Intermarriage with traders and other Europeans created an elite class of Cherokees who spoke English, pursued education in premier U.S. institutions, and often held slaves. Missionaries lived within the nation, and an increasing number of Cherokees adopted Christianity.

Following European models of government, Cherokees wrote and passed their own constitution in 1827. Sequoyah invented a Cherokee alphabet in 1821, and the Cherokee Phoenix, a national Newspaper, was founded in 1828.

In the 1820s and 1830s, the Cherokee nation was at the center of many important and controversial decisions regarding Native American sovereignty. American settlers living around the Cherokees were anxious to acquire tribal lands. The U.S. government, particularly during the presidency of Andrew Jackson, pressured the tribe to move west. As early as 1828, some Cherokees accepted land in Indian Territory (now northeastern Oklahoma) and relocated peacefully.

After years of resistance to removal, a small faction of the Cherokee Nation signed the Treaty of New Echota in 1835, exchanging the tribe's land in the East for western lands, annuities, and the promise of self-government. Some moved west at that time, but most rejected the treaty and refused to leave their homes. U.S. troops entered Cherokee lands to force them to leave.

In 1838 and 1839, the majority of Cherokees were forced to make the journey, many on foot, from their

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homes in the East to Indian Territory. Over 12,000 men, women, and children embarked upon the trail west, but over one-fourth of them died as a result of the journey. Due to the harsh conditions of the journey and the tragedy endured, the trip was named the Trail of Tears. The Cherokees' trauma has become emblematic of all forced removals of Native Americans from lands east of the Mississippi, and of all of the tragedies that American Indians have suffered at the hands of the U.S. government over several centuries.

A number of Cherokees separated from those heading west and settled in North Carolina. These people and their descendents are known as the Eastern Cherokee. Today, this portion of the tribe, in addition to the United Keetoowah Band and the Cherokee Nation, form the three major groups of contemporary Cherokees.

After the survivors of the Trail of Tears arrived in Indian Territory (they were commonly called the Ross party, due to their allegiance to their principal chief, John Ross), a period of turmoil ensued. Ross's followers claimed

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the treaty signers had betrayed the nation, and conflict continued between the Old Settlers (those who had relocated voluntarily), the treaty party, and the Ross party. Although this conflict was eventually resolved, tension remained and was exacerbated by the Civil War. During the war the Cherokee Nation officially allied itself with the Confederacy, but many Cherokee men fought for the Union. The Civil War destroyed Cherokee lives and property, and the Union victory forced the tribe to give up even more of its land.

During the second half of the nineteenth century, members of the Cherokee Nation rebuilt their government. By the end of the century it boasted a national council, a justice system, and medical and educational systems to care for its citizens.

In the 1890s, the U.S. Congress passed legislation mandating the allotment of land previously held in common by citizens of the Cherokee Nation. In 1906, in anticipation of Oklahoma statehood, the federal government unilaterally dissolved the sovereign government of the Cherokee Nation. Many Cherokee landowners were placed under restrictions, forced to defer to a guardian to manage their lands. Graft and corruption tainted this system and left many destitute. Despite this turmoil, many played an active role in governing the new state of Oklahoma, and Cherokees in Oklahoma and North Carolina kept their traditions alive.

In the 1960s, Cherokees pursued ways to commemorate their traditions and consolidate tribal affiliations. They formed organizations such as the Cherokee National Historical Society and initiated the Cherokee National Holiday, a celebration of their arts and government. In 1971, they elected a chief for the first time since Oklahoma statehood, beginning the process of revitalizing their government. In 1987, Wilma Mankiller was elected the first woman chief. The renewed interest in tribal politics and the strength of services continues in the Cherokee Nation.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Ehle, John. Trail of Tears: The Rise and Fall of the Cherokee Nation. New York: Doubleday, 1988.

McLoughlin, William G. After the Trail of Tears: The Cherokees' Struggle for Sovereignty, 1839–1880. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1993.

Perdue, Theda. Cherokee Women: Gender and Culture Change, 1700–1835. Lincoln: University of Nebraska, 1998.

Woodward, Grace Steele. The Cherokees. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1963.

Kerry Wynn

See also Cherokee Language ; Cherokee Nation Cases ; Cherokee Wars .