Pre-colonialism the Cherokee people, members of the Iroquoian language family, had an exceedingly vast Mississippian-like culture which had thrived for generations after migrating from the Great Lakes region of North America. “The Cherokee settled in a huge swath of territory that included parts of present-day Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia”(Treuer 84). Mississippian Culture otherwise referenced as “Moundville” in the Atlas of Indian Nations, represented a plethora of cultures from the Southeastern region as the driving force which initiated a shared communal way of life in hunting, fishing, farming, spiritual ceremonies, and many others. Moundville is essentially unique because of its direct impact on the adaptations in lifeways prior to “first contact” with European colonists. “The Alabama Choctaw, Creek, and Cherokee of early historic times no longer built mounds, but they regarded the abandoned Mississippian mounds as symbols of the fertile earth and the origin places of their ancestors”(Blitz). One commonality which can be seen as a direct result of this in the Cherokee culture exists within their agricultural harvested crops of corn, beans, and squash also known as the “three sisters”. “During this time (Mississippian Period 900-1500 A.D.), people developed a new variety of corn called eastern flint, which closely resembles modern corn. It was grown with beans and squash (known as the “Three Sisters,”) in fields surrounded by gourd birdhouses hung on poles”(Museum of the Cherokee Indian ). —-Here is a link to a Native American story of the “Three Sisters”http://www.birdclan.org/threesisters.htm
One other example regarding life-way adaptation with the Cherokee involves a life doctrine which they followed called duyuktv. “At the heart of this culture was the idea of balance, or duyuktv, “the right way.” Men’s hunting and fishing, for example, was balanced by women’s farming. The rights of the individual were balanced with the good of the whole, resulting in great personal freedom within the context of responsibility to the family, clan, and tribe”(Cherokee Indian Heritage and History: An Introduction to Cherokee History and Culture). Ultimately, this reflection of balance within all of Cherokee culture (spiritual, cultural, economic, and political) continued to exist after contact with the colonists.
Post-Colonialism, the Cherokee, with their sense of balance approach to all aspects of life were open to the new technologies and ideas which came from trading with the Europeans. The biggest adoption into Cherokee culture introduced by the Europeans was writing. “Sequoyah’s Cherokee syllabary, introduced in 1821, was a remarkable writing system developed by a previously nonliterate people”(Treuer 66). “As a member of the “Five Civilized Tribes” the Cherokee also began utilizing European clothes and farming equipment as a result of trade” (Treuer 76). Additionally, they began changing their political system which involved written law and a democratic styled structure. “They formed a modern government, evolving their matrilineal clan-based system into a representative council”(Treuer 84).
Equally important, the Cherokee also adopted the slave trade, and made various land treaties with the Europeans to establish a sense of peace among their new neighbors. “Relations with the Whites were upon the whole friendly until 1759 when the Indians refused to accede to the demand of the Governor of South Carolina that a number of Indians including two leading chiefs be turned over to him for execution under the charge that they had killed a White man”(Cherokee Indians). As land grabbing continued by the European colonists with discoveries of gold, and political westward expansion the Cherokee were driven from their territory and forced to relocate in Oklahoma. “Most Cherokee were forced to march (Trail of Tears) to Oklahoma where they formed the Cherokee Nation”(Treuer 84-85).
In closing, briefly addressing what aspects of culture Euro-Americans adopted from the societies in the Mississippi region are related to both material goods and farming techniques. “The Cherokees taught the early settlers how to hunt, fish, and farm in their new environment. They introduced them to crops such as corn, squash, and potatoes; and taught them how to use herbal medicines for illnesses”(NationalParkService).
Sidenote: The best example regarding medical treatment in terms of cultural exchange was collection of manuscripts by an ethnologist by the name of James Mooney. Here is a link to his work entitled The Sacred Formulas of the Cherokees. https://www.gutenberg.org/files/24788/24788-h/24788-h.htm#page310
Works Cited
Blitz, John H. Encyclopedia of Alabama-Mississppian Peroid . 27 June 2013. 1 December 2017. <http://encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-1130>.
Cherokee Indian Heritage and History: An Introduction to Cherokee History and Culture. n.d. 01 December 2017. http://thomaslegion.net/cherokeeindianheritageandhistoryanintroductiontocherokeehistoryandculture.html.
Cherokee Indians. 30 April 2012. 01 December 2017. <https://www.accessgenealogy.com/native/cherokee-indians.htm>.
National Park Service. n.d. 01 December 2017. <.https://www.nps.gov/articles/the-trail-of-tears-and-the-forced-relocation-of-the-cherokee-nation-teaching-with-historic-places.htm>.
Museum of the Cherokee Indian . n.d. 01 December 2017. <http://www.cherokeemuseum.org/archives/era/mississippian>.
Treuer, Anton. Atlas of Indian Nations . Washington DC: National Geographic , 2013.
