Lessons In Cherokee


Lesson 1 §  Lesson 2 §  Lesson 3 §  Lesson 4 §  Lesson 5  §  Lesson 6.


Grammatical Rules: Keep these in mind when pronouncing words.

  • *An apostrophes (' ) means that the syllable is accented.
  • * A question mark (?) between the syllables of a word indicates a pause
    called a glottal stop. This means that you stop dead momentarily between
    these syllables, then go on, as in the English word O.K.
  • *A colon (:) after a vowel means that the vowel sound is held longer than usual.

    • Syllabary:

    You will need a copy of the syllabary to fully benefit from the lessons.
    If you do not have one e-mail Tiger Eyes and I will tell you how to get one,
    or pick up one at one of the powwows (another good reason to attend).


    Let's begin with counting. Use the syllabary chart to fill in the blanks. The first one is done to illustrate.

    One sa' quu i

    Two _________ ta? li

    Three _________ tso: i'

    Four _________ nv: gi'

    Five _________ hi: s gi'

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    In the last lesson we learned to count from one to five and filled in
    the syllabary for these numbers. In this lesson we will see if the
    syllabary we filled in is correct and will move on to numbers six through
    ten. We will also introduce some phrases to greet your friends with and
    the phrases with which they might respond . Next we introduce a few
    vocabulary words to help build a language base to work from. Hang on
    'cause here we go!

    Fill the blanks by referring to your syllabary.

    1. one sa - quu - i

    2. two ta? - li

    3. three tso: - i

    4. four nv: -gi

    5. five hi: - s - gi

    6. six __________ su - da - li

    7. seven __________ ga - li -quo: - gi

    8. eight __________ tsu - ne: - la

    9. nine __________ so -ne: -la

    10. ten __________ s - go - hi

    A short dialog:

    First person
    Bill, O si yo __________ do hi tsu________.

    Second person
    O s da ________, ni hi na ___________.

    First person
    O s da dv ____________.

    Second person
    Ho wa __________.

    Vocabulary: (keyed to the dialog)

    o si yo (hello)______do hi tsu(how are you)

    o s da (fine)______ni hi na(and you)

    o s da dv(fine)

    ho wa (alright!)


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    In the last lesson we learned to count from six to ten and filled in the
    syllabary for these numbers. In this lesson we will see if the syllabary we
    filled in is correct and will move on to numbers eleven through fifteen.
    We will also introduce some more phrases and vocabulary words to help build
    a language base to work from. Make certain to fill in the syllabary for the
    new material below and be certain to review the old material..

    Fill the blanks by referring to your syllabary.

    6. six su - da - li

    7. seven ga - li -quo: - gi

    8. eight tsu - ne: - la

    9. nine so - ne: -la

    10. ten s - go - hi

    11. eleven _________ sa - du - i

    12. twelve ________ ta - li - du - i

    13. thirteen _______ tso - ga - du - i

    14. fourteen _______ ni - ga - du - i

    15. fifteen ________ s - gi - da - du - i

    A short dialog:

    (1)First person (2)Second person

    (1) Bill, O si yo______do hi tsu

    (2) O s da______ ni-hi-na

    (1) O s da dv

    (2) Ho wa

    A short dialog: (new dialog)

    (1)First person (2) Second person

    (1) Ga to de tsa' to a' ______________

    (2) Bill da wa? to: a _______________

    (1) Hi tsa-la-gi s ________________

    (2) Tsi tsa-la-gi ________________

    (1) Tsa-la-gi s hi-wo-ni ______________

    (2) Tsa-la-gi ga-yo:tli tsi-wo-ni ____________

    Vocabulary: (keyed to the dialog)

    (1) Ga to de tsa' to a' ______(What is your name?)

    (2) Bill da wa? to: a______(Bill, is my name)

    (1) Hi tsa-la-gi s______(Are you Cherokee?)

    (2) Tsi tsa-la-gi______(I am Cherokee)

    (1) Tsa-la-gi s hi-wo-ni______(Do you speak Cherokee?)

    (2) Tsa-la-gi ga-yo:tli tsi-wo-ni______(I speak a little Cherokee)



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    In Lesson 3, we learned to count from eleven to fifteen and filled in the syllabary
    for these numbers. In this lesson we will see if the syllabary we filled in is correct and
    will move on to numbers sixteen through twenty. We will also introduce some more phrases and
    vocabulary words to help build a language base from which to work. Make certain to fill in the
    syllabary for the new material below and to review the old material.

    Fill the blanks by referring to your syllabary.

    11. eleven sa - du - i

    12. twelve ta - li - du - i

    13. thirteen tso - ga - du - i

    14. fourteen ni - ga - du - i

    15. fifteen - gi - da - du - i

    16. sixteen ___________ da-la-du-i

    17. seventeen _________ ga-li-qua-du-i

    18. eighteen __________ ne-la-du-i

    19. nineteen __________ so-hne-la-du-i

    20. twenty ___________ ta-li-s-go-hi

    A Short Dialog ( from Lesson 3):

    (1) First person (2) Second person

    (1) Ga to de tsa' to a'

    (2) Bill da wa? to: a

    (1) Hi tsa-la-gi s

    (2) Tsi tsa-la-gi

    (1) Tsa-la-gi s hi-wo-ni

    (2) Tsa-la-gi ga-yo:tli tsi-wo-ni

    A New Short Dialog:

    (1) First person (2) Second person

    (1) Jane o-si-yo, do-hi-tsu _____________

    (2)Carl o-si-yo, o-s-da ____________
    (1) Ha-tlv he'-ga ________________
    (2) Di-que-nv-sv-i ge:-ga __________
    (1) Da-ni-la'-wi-ga ge:-ga _____________
    (2)Do-nv-da-go-hv-i __________________
    (1) Ho-wa _________________

    Vocabulary (keyed to the dialog):

    (1) Jane o-si-yo, do-hi-tsu Jane hello, how are you?
    (2)Carl o-si-yo, o-s-daCarl hello, I am fine.
    (1) Ha-tlv he'-gaWhere are you going?
    (2)Di-que-nv-sv-i ge:-gaI am going home.
    (1) Da-ni-la'-wi-ga ge:-gaI am going to church service.
    (2)Do-nv-da-go-hv-iUntil we meet again.
    (1) Ho-wa All right!


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    In Lesson 4, we learned to count from sixteen to twenty and filled in the syllabary for these numbers.
    In this lesson we will see if the syllabary we filled in is correct and this will be enough numbers for now.
    We will see more numbers in later lessons. We will also introduce some more vocabulary words to help build a
    language base from which to work . Make certain to fill in the syllabary for the new material below and to
    review the old material.

    Answers to Lesson 4:

    16. sixteen da-la-du-i

    17. seventeen ga-li-qua-du-i

    18. eighteen ne-la-du-i

    19. nineteen so-hne-la-du-i

    20. twenty ta-li-s-go-hi

    A Short Dialog (from Lesson 4):

    (1) First person (2) Second person

    (1) Jane o-si-yo, do-hi-tsu

    (2) Carl o-si-yo, o-s-da

    (1) Ha-tlv he'-ga

    (2) Di-que-nv-sv-i ge:-ga

    (1) Da-ni-la'-wi-ga ge:-ga

    (2) Do-nv-da-go-hv-i

    (1) Ho-wa

    Vocabulary (keyed to the dialog):

    (1) Jane o-si-yo, do-hi-tsuJane hello, how are you?

    (2) Carl o-si-yo, o-s-daCarl hello, I am fine.

    (1) Ha-tlv he'-gaWhere are you going?

    (2) Di-que-nv-sv-i ge:-ga I am going home.

    (1) Da-ni-la'-wi-ga ge:-gaI am going to church service.

    (2) Do-nv-da-go-hv-iUntil we meet again.

    (1) Ho-wa All right!


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    Emphasis in this lesson will be learning the syllabary, building basic vocabulary and using
    short common phrases.

    Syllabary : Under each symbol write the sound it makes. Refer to your syllabary chart as needed.
    Take fifteen minutes and rewrite these over and over on another piece of paper until you no longer need
    to refer to the chart. Do this again each day for five days in a row. If you do - you will then know them.
    Then try to fill in the syllabary for the vocabulary words using the same method. Be certain to say each
    word aloud as you complete it. Don't forget to cover the syllabary to the right - use it to check yourself.
    Remember repitition is the key to learning.

    Vocabulary:

    where ha:-tlv ______________

    what ga-do' ______________

    I go ge:-ga ______________

    you go he'-ga ______________

    he/she/it goes e:-ga ______________

    they go a- ne:-ga ______________

    I do (am doing) ga-dv-ne-ha ______________

    you do (are doing) ha-dv-ne-ha ______________

    he/she is doing a-dv-ne-ha ______________

    Phrases:

    Where am I going? Ha-tlv ge:-ga? ______________

    Where are you going? Ha-tlv he:-ga? ______________

    Where is he/she going? Ha-tlv e:-ga? ______________

    What am I doing? Ga-do ga-dv-ne-ha? ______________

    What are you doing? Ga-do ha-dv-ne-ha? ______________

    What is he/she doing? Ga-do a-dv-ne-ha? ______________


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    History of the Cherokee Language Syllabray Table Syllabray Table to Print
    Language History Language Lessons Download Audio Syllabary
    Miscellaneous Words nouns § verbs § names


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