The Native People of North Carolina: The Cherokee, The Catawba, The Hatteras, The Roanokes, The Croatoans, The Secotans, The Pamlicos, and The Tuscaroras

Regions There are 3 regions in our state:

The Mountain Region,

The Piedmont,

And the Coastal Plain!

Each region in our state was the home to different tribes of Native Americans.

The Cherokees were the largest Native American group living in the Mountain Region. Cherokee means “Speakers of another language”

The Cherokees spoke a language in the Iroquoian language family. “Osiyo” = hello “Wado” = thank you http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEXKjyqTw1o&feature=share&list=UUuqKGb4re9a5TssItxrTw6Q

Cherokee society was divided into seven clans and was democratic.

Cherokee girls and women worked in the fields, prepared food, made baskets, and took care of the children. Cherokee boys and men hunted and fished.

Cherokee villages held the Green Corn Ceremony to give thanks for a good harvest.

Cherokees built large, sturdy, rectangular homes for shelter. A hole in the roof let out smoke from the fire pit below.

The Catawba's were the largest group of Native Americans living in the Piedmont Region. There were between 5,000 and 6,000 members. “The People of the River”

The Catawba's spoke the Siouan language and the Catawba language. “Hawoh” = thank you

The Catawba government was democratic The Catawba government was democratic. All members of the community would meet and discuss problems.

The Catawba people hunted, gathered food, and farmed.

Catawba lived in small villages along the river. They made round houses.

One tradition was called “The Three Sisters,” which was planting beans, corns, and squash in the same mound of dirt.

Tribes in the Coastal Plain Region included: Hatteras, Roanokes, Croatoans, Secotans, Pamlicos, and Tuscaroras.

The Coastal Plain Native Americans spoke the Algonquian languages. The Algonquian languages can still be heard in English today: chipmunk, raccoon, pecan, hickory, skunk, and succotash are all Algonquian words.

The government was democratic The government was democratic. The chief of the tribe would make the final decisions.

They hunted with bows and arrows. They fished using weirs to trap fish. Shells were cut and made into strings of beads called wampum. Wampum was traded for other goods.

A cultural tradition was making pottery A cultural tradition was making pottery. Clay was used, mixed with crushed shell bits to make bowls, pipes, and arrowheads.

Their villages were along the rivers and sounds Their villages were along the rivers and sounds. They built longhouses made of wooden frames with rounded roofs covered with bark or grass.

The following 3 slides are the student pages The following 3 slides are the student pages. Please print each of the three slides and give to the students. They color code each piece of information according to the slide color. Students should also add illustrations. Finally, link the three pages together with yarn.

People of the Mountain Region   The Cherokees were the largest Native American group living in the Mountain region.   The Cherokees spoke a language in the Iroquoian language family.   Cherokee society was divided into seven clans.   The Cherokee government was democratic.   Cherokee girls and women worked in the fields, prepared food, made baskets, and took care of the children.   Cherokee boys and men hunted and fished.   Cherokee villages held the Green Corn Ceremony to give thanks for a good harvest and to celebrate the New Year.   Cherokees built large, sturdy, rectangular homes for shelter. They stretched bark and woven material over the framework. The walls were covered with a mixture of grass and clay and the roof with bark or thatch which is dried grass. A hole in the roof let out smoke from the fire pit below.  

People of the Piedmont Region   The Catawba’s were the largest group ofNative Americans living in the Piedmont region. There were between 5,000 and 6,000 members.   They spoke the Siouan language.   The Catawba government was democratic. All members of the community would meet and discuss problems. A council made up of older members of the tribe would make final decisions.   The Catawba people hunted, gathered food, and farmed.   One tradition was called “he Three Sisters” which was planting beans, corn, and squash in the same mound of dirt. The bean and squash vines would grow up the corn stalks.   Catawba’s lived in small villages along rivers. There were 5 to 15 round houses made of wooden frames covered with tree bark surrounded by palisades (fence) in each village.  

People of the Coastal Plain Region   Tribes in this area were: Hatteras, Roanokes, Croatoans, Secotans, Pamlicos and Tuscaroras.   They spoke the Algonquian languages.   The government was democratic. All members of the community would meet and discuss problems. The chief of the tribe would make the final decisions. They hunted with bows and arrows, fished, using weirs to trap fish, and farmed. Corn was the main crop, but they planted pumpkins and beans. Women gathered clams and oysters along the shore. Shells were cut and made into strings of beads called wampum. Wampum was traded for other goods such as clay and salt from other tribes in the Piedmont and Mountain regions.   Their villages were along rivers and sounds. There were 10 to 30 long rectangular houses called longhouses made of wooden frames with rounded roofs covered with tree bark or grass.