Aniyvwiya (Aniyunwiya)

The United Aniyunwiya (ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯ/Aniyvwiya) Community flag

Aniyunwiya (A-ni-yvwi-ya/ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯ) is a specific group of Original People (Iroquoian-speaking people) from the Eastern Woodlands of the United States of America, from areas that are now known as: Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee. Nowadays, these people are usually classified on public records as well as by modern society as: "Cherokee", "Cherokee Freedmen", "Black" or "African-American".

Aniyunwiya (Ani-yvwi-ya) is a term which literally means "They People Real (the Original People, they Indians Real..., etc)" in the gawonihisdi ("language") and can be broken down grammatically by speakers of the language. For example: "A-ni-" is a pronoun prefix (for animate objects) which means "they", "-yvwi-" is a stem noun which means "people/Indian" and -"ya(i)" is a suffix which means "real" or "pure".

An Ethnographer by the name of James Mooney studied their language, culture, and mythology. He then produced a book called "Myths of the Cherokee" which was published in 1902 by the U.S Bureau of American Ethnology, within the Smithsonian Institution.

The term "Cherokee" (Tsalagi) is not what the people actually called themselves, it has no meaning in their own language and seems to be of foreign origin. The term "Cherokee" (Tsalagi) was said to be derived from the Choctaw ("Chahta") word "Choluk" or "Chiluk", signifying a pit or cave, and comes to us through the so-called Mobilian trade language, a corrupted Choctaw jargon formerly used as the medium of communication among all the tribes of the Gulf states, as far north as the State of Ohio. Within these areas, many tribes were commonly known under Choctaw names. If such a name existed for the Aniyvwiya ("Cherokee"), it must have undoubtedly have been communicated to the first Spanish explorers by De Soto’s interpreters in the 1540's.

Gallery

Further reading

Myths of the Cherokee Myths of the Cherokee, page 15

The term "Aniyvwiya" & the term "Cherokee" in the language courtesy of Culture V

"Cherokee" Indian, Joe Harris courtesy of the Library of Congress

'Cherokee" Basket Makers courtesy of the Smithsonian Institute

Shirl Bates, a descendant of Choctaws and "Cherokees" courtesy of the Library of Congress

Swimmer, "Cherokee" traditionalist and storyteller courtesy of NCPedia

Walini, a "Cherokee' woman courtesy of West Carolina University

"Cherokee" war Chief, Tuch-ee courtesy of New York Public Library"

Mr. Frank Barnett's son who is "Negro" and part "Cherokee" Indian courtesy of the Library of Congress

Wilnoti, a "Cherokee" man courtesy of the Smithsonian Institute Ayasta, a "Cherokee" woman courtesy of "Myths of the Cherokee"

Captain Scraper, "Cherokee" Delegate courtesy of Harvard University

Eartha Kitt, "African-American" and "Cherokee" descent, courtesy of IMDB

The United Aniyunwiya/Aniyvwiya Community flag

Color Symbolism courtesy of Sacred Texts

References

This article "Aniyvwiya (Aniyunwiya)" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Aniyvwiya (Aniyunwiya). Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

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