Sequoyah a k a George Gist Inventor of

Sequoyah (a. k. a George Gist) Inventor of the Cherokee Alphabet

Sequoyah Born near Tuskeegee, Tennesee in 1776 l Died near Tyler, Texas in 1843 l His mother was the daughter of a Cherokee chief and his father was a Virginia fur trader named Nathaniel Gist. l

Fleeing Tennessee l Sequoyah fled Tennessee because of the encroachment of whites as a youth. l He moved to Georgia where he became a silversmith.

How it all began l l l While Sequoyah was working as a silversmith, a man asked him to sign his work, as the white silversmiths had done. Sequoyah, however, did not know how to write his name. This sent him to Charles Hicks, a wealthy farmer, to teach him how to write his name.

The beginning of a new language: Hicks showed Sequoyah how spell his name by writing the letters on a piece of paper. l In 1809 Sequoyah began developing the idea of a Cherokee writing system. l

Cherokee War Then he moved to Willstown, Alabama and joined the Cherokee Regiment in a battle against the Creeks. l This battle became known as the Battle of Horseshoe Bend. l During this battle, Sequoyah realized the importance of a writing system because the Cherokees were unable to communicate with their families during the war. l

Characteristics of the writing system Sequoyah used a phonetic system, where each sound made in speech was represented by a symbol. l He called it “Talking Leaves”, 85 letters that make-up the Cherokee syllabary l

Implementation of the Cherokee Syllabary Sequoyah went before the council to propose his new syllabary. l After the completion of the syllabary in 1821, it was rapidly adopted by many Cherokees. l Within two years many Cherokees had learned the syllabary and it made it possible for them to print books and newspapers in their language. l

Life after developing the syllabary l After Sequoyah developed the Cherokee syllabary, he went into politics. l He was elected as a Cherokee delegate to the United States government in Washington, D. C. l In 1824, the National Council at New Echota struck a silver medal in Sequoyah’s honor.

Sequoyah’s Impact l The impact made by Sequoyah’s development of the Cherokee alphabet can be seen throughout the Cherokee history. l It made it possible for them to document their experiences and increase their communications between each other.

Resources l http: //ngeorgia. com/ang/Sequoyah(a. k. a_ George_Gist) l http: //www. harcourtschool. com/activity/bi ographies/sequoyah/ l http: //www. georgiaencyclopedia. org/nge/ Article. jsp? id=h-618&hl=y