Born around 1765, Sequoya was a member of the Cherokee tribe. He was fascinated by the marks on paper that white people used to communicate. In
1809, he decided to create an alphabet for his people. He devoted 12 years of his
life to the project. His 85-letter alphabet gave a symbol for each sound in the
Cherokee language. In 1821, Sequoya showed the Cherokee leaders how his new
alphabet worked. The wise men recognized the alphabet's great worth Before
long, the Cherokee were able to read and write their own language.
B.
The Cherokee Phoenix was the first Native American newspaper in
the United States. It was first printed in 1828 in New Echota, Georgia, the capital
of the Cherokee Nation. The weekly paper had both Cherokee and English text.
For the first time, Cherokees were able to read the news of their nation in their
own language. The Cherokee tribes were scattered in far places such as Georgia,
Alabama, North Carolina, and Texas. By printing news in the Cherokee language,
the newspaper helped bring the tribes together as a single nation.
1. Which topic is central to both passages?