My Cherokee Report

Cherokee  Men

To start off, the men did most of the handy work. This includes, building canoes and houses for their wives. If they didn't make a house they would just stay with the wife's family.

Women

Unlike most women in Colonial America, Cherokee women were respected. They were warriors, even though they still did normal chores like farming and making baskets. Even though the man would build the home, the woman owned it.

Marriage

Getting married had lots of rules. First, you would need to ask your family members if they thought the marriage was a good decision. If they didn't find one they couldn't get married. In most cases they would have to search very hard to find someone that would say yes. Once that is done, you need to go to the women's village chief. You would have to ask him about the marriage. The chief would take two roots in his hands and then pray. If both of the roots moved it meant good luck and you could get married. If only one moved it meant bad luck and you couldn't get married. These rules are very important and must be done.

Cherokee Arts and Crafts

• Canoes
• Clay pots
• Carved pipes
• Masks and rattles
• Double wall baskets
• Canes

The Cherokee had many crafts.The masks and rattles were used for festivals and the clay pots were for holding supplies and decoration.

Food

Since there were many farmers they had lots of fruits and vegetables. Some foods are: pumpkins, melons, tobacco, sunflower seeds, corn, and squash. They were also hunters and fishers, they would eat fish. The most common food source  of food was deer.

Clothes

Women wore deer skins. They used deer skins for: shirts, skirts, and moccasins. The men wore deer skin loin clothes in the summer and thick robes in the winter. They used deer skins for everything.

The Deer God

The Cherokee believed in a Deer God. They worship this god because if they don't, they think the Deer God will get angry and take all of the deer away, forever. Every time they killed a deer they said sorry to the deer god. They never hunted for sport, they only killed deer to live. They only took what was needed. 

Animal spirits

They also believed in spirit animals. The Cherokee believed that if you wore an animal skin you would gain it's abilities. For instance, if you wore a deer skin you would gain it's abilities.

The Green Corn Festival

This festival is to celebrate the corn becoming ripe enough to eat. First, messengers would take invitations to other villages. This would spread the word that the corn was ripe and ready to eat. They couldn't eat any corn until the festival was coming to a close. They would sacrifice 7 corn kernels from 7 ears of corn and a deer's tongue. The chief was only allowed to eat corn from the last festival.

Winter Home

The winter homes were used in the winter to keep warm. The houses were made out of wood  and had a fire in the center for warmth. These houses are used for protection against the freezing cold.

Summer Home

These houses are for the summer and are larger than the winter home. They are covered with grass and rectangular. They let in light and are made to have air come through them.

Villiage Life

Each family has two houses, one for summer and one for winter. These homes have different purposes.

Death

The Cherokee had funerals and when someone was about to die only the priest and adult relatives could see him or her. The women would weep and sing the deceased's name over and over again. Then, they would close his/her eyes and cover them with purifying liquid and water. The purifying liquid was a potion that the chief or doctor would make.

Citations

• mrdonn.com
• www.cherokeeblood.com
• flickr.com