Chapter 3 Quiz: Cherokee Appalachia — The Nation That Shaped the Mountains

Multiple Choice

1. The Cherokee name for themselves, Ani-Yunwiya, is usually translated as:

a) People of the Mountains b) The Principal People c) The Cave People d) The First Farmers

2. Cherokee society was organized around how many clans?

a) Four b) Five c) Seven d) Twelve

3. Cherokee clan membership was determined by:

a) The father's clan b) The mother's clan c) The town in which a person was born d) Individual choice at adulthood

4. The "Three Sisters" in Cherokee agriculture refers to:

a) Three Cherokee goddesses associated with farming b) Corn, beans, and squash grown together as an intercropping system c) Three rivers used for irrigation d) Three varieties of corn bred by Cherokee women

5. What role did beans play in the Three Sisters agricultural system?

a) They provided shade for the corn plants b) They suppressed weeds around the squash c) They fixed nitrogen from the atmosphere into the soil, naturally fertilizing it d) They attracted pollinating insects

6. Sequoyah created the Cherokee syllabary approximately:

a) In the 1680s, before European contact b) Around 1776, during the American Revolution c) Around 1821, after approximately twelve years of work d) In 1838, during the Trail of Tears

7. A syllabary differs from an alphabet in that:

a) A syllabary has fewer symbols than an alphabet b) Each symbol in a syllabary represents a syllable, not an individual sound c) A syllabary can only be used for one language d) A syllabary is always written right to left

8. The Cherokee Phoenix was significant because it was:

a) The first newspaper published in the United States b) The first newspaper published by a Native American nation, printed in both English and Cherokee c) The first newspaper to oppose slavery d) The first newspaper published west of the Mississippi

9. The Ghigau (Beloved Woman) was:

a) A ceremonial title given to the oldest woman in each town b) A powerful position held by a woman, with authority to speak in council and spare prisoners of war c) The wife of the Principal Chief d) A spiritual leader who lived in isolation from the community

10. Nancy Ward (Nanye'hi) earned the title of Ghigau after:

a) Negotiating a peace treaty with the British b) Creating the Cherokee syllabary c) Distinguishing herself at the Battle of Taliwa against the Creek in 1755 d) Being chosen by the seven clans in a formal election

11. The Cherokee practice of controlled burning of the forest understory was intended to:

a) Destroy enemy villages b) Create farmland for planting corn c) Stimulate new growth that attracted game animals, maintain open travel areas, and reduce wildfire risk d) Clear land for European settlers

12. Cherokee town governance operated primarily through:

a) A hereditary monarchy passed from father to son b) A military dictatorship led by the strongest warrior c) Consensus decision-making in council, with representatives from all seven clans d) A direct democracy in which every adult voted on every issue

13. New Echota was:

a) A Cherokee religious site in the Great Smoky Mountains b) The Cherokee national capital in northwestern Georgia, home to the printing press and government buildings c) A British trading post on the Carolina coast d) The name of the sacred fire at the center of each council house

14. In the deerskin trade, the Cherokee exchanged animal hides primarily for:

a) Gold and silver coins b) Enslaved people from other nations c) Metal tools, cloth, firearms, ammunition, and other manufactured goods d) Seeds and agricultural knowledge

15. Attakullakulla (Little Carpenter) was notable in Cherokee history as:

a) The inventor of the Cherokee syllabary b) A skilled diplomat who traveled to London and negotiated with colonial powers c) The first Cherokee to convert to Christianity d) The military commander who defeated the British at Taliwa

16. The Cherokee Constitution of 1827:

a) Was written in English only b) Established a three-branch government modeled in part on the U.S. Constitution c) Was drafted by European advisors with no Cherokee input d) Abolished the clan system entirely

Short Answer

17. In three to four sentences, explain why Cherokee agriculture was more ecologically sustainable than the monoculture farming practices that European settlers brought to the region. Include at least two specific practices or techniques.

18. The chapter argues that the Cherokee's adoption of Western institutions — a constitution, a newspaper, a written language — was a deliberate political strategy. In two to three sentences, explain what the Cherokee hoped to achieve with this strategy and why it ultimately failed.

19. Describe the Cherokee clan system's role in maintaining social bonds across Cherokee territory. How could a Cherokee person from the Overhill towns travel to the Lower towns and find support, even among people they had never met?

20. The chapter states that "to take the land was not merely to take property. It was to erase a library." In your own words, explain what this means in the context of Cherokee spiritual geography.

Answer Key Location

Answers to selected questions can be found in Appendix: Answers to Selected Exercises.