Cherokee, a member of the Iroquoian language family, is spoken by about 2,000 people, primarily among the Cherokee Nation in the United States. Its unique syllabary, created by Sequoyah, allows for efficient and culturally significant writing. Cherokee is tonal, with six tones, and features free word order. Though endangered, revitalization efforts include education programs and media in Cherokee to preserve this culturally rich language.
Stats
Language Family: Iroquoian
Writing System: Cherokee
Writing System Type: Syllabary
Writing Direction: L to R
Tones / Pitch Accent: 6
Morphology: Agglutinative
Cases: None
Grammatical Gender / Noun Class: None
Number of Verb Tenses: 5
Word Order: Free
Number of Vowels (Monophthongs): 12
Number of Consonants: 13
Areas Where Spoken
United States of America (0.001%) (2 k)
Resources
Dictionary
Lessons
RSU Public TV: Cherokee 1, Cherokee 2: Recorded 50-minute video lessons by Wade Blevins, a Cherokee Nation second-language speaker
ebcikpep.com: Audio lessons
culturev.com: Verbs, dialogues, grammar, podcasts
Mango Languages: Free with a US library card
Phrasebook
Textbooks
Translator
YouTube
Sally Dixon: Culture