Two Homelands, Many Changes
The Cherokee are a Native American people whose homelands included the southern Appalachian Mountains and nearby valleys. Long ago, many Cherokee families lived in houses made from a framework of poles covered with woven branches and clay. Some families also used round winter houses that held heat well. Cherokee farmers grew corn, beans, and squash. People also gathered nuts and berries, hunted, and fished in the forests and rivers. Baskets helped carry food, and wooden tools helped with planting and building.
The Chumash are a Native American people whose homelands were along the coast and islands of central California. Their villages included dome-shaped homes made with willow poles and tule reeds. The ocean, beaches, and oak woodlands provided different resources. Chumash people fished, gathered shellfish, collected acorns, and used other plants. Skilled canoe makers built large plank canoes called tomols. These boats helped people travel and fish along the coast and between some islands. Chumash people also made baskets and used shell beads in trade.
Cherokee and Chumash people still live today, although their communities and homes have changed over time. Many Cherokee people live in modern houses in communities in Oklahoma and North Carolina. Cherokee citizens continue to protect their language, make traditional crafts, and grow or prepare some traditional foods. Many Chumash descendants live in California. Some work to teach Chumash languages, care for coastal places, and continue basket-making traditions. Modern tools and transportation are part of daily life for both peoples, but traditional knowledge remains important.
The two homelands shaped different ways of living. Mountain forests and rivers offered the Cherokee certain foods and materials, while the Chumash coast, islands, and oak woodlands offered others. The past and present are connected, but they are not identical. A modern home or tool may be different from one used long ago, while a language, craft, food, or responsibility to a homeland may continue.