Cherokee Nation
Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. and Deputy Cheif Bryan Warner
Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. and Deputy Cheif Bryan Warner
Just like most Native Americans, Cherokee men and women had traditional clothing consisting of deerskin items. After the Europeans came, their clothing began to change. A major notice is in their moccasins; men used to wear moccasins that almost fit like pants, going up around their knee/thigh. Women used to wear low moccasins, around their ankles, until later on, when it's almost like they switched shoes!
Cherokee men wore deerskin breechclothes and typically no shirt, until Europeans influenced their culture, then they wore long shirts. In the winter both women and men wore cloak-like shirts with animal fur on the inside to help keep them warm.
Cherokee women used to wear simple deerskin clothes before the Europeans came. After, Cherokee women wore deerskin dresses that reached the middle of their thighs. The dresses had a hand-woven belt at the waist. They also wrapped a deer-hide scarf around their necks, which was tucked into the neckline. Underneath was a woven hemp underskirt that started at the waist and went as long as the dress. The underskirt had long fringes that reached the ankles. The women also wore moccasins, but they came up to the knee and were sometimes decorated with colored beads.
Today, modern Cherokee men and women will wear clothes that resemble their traditional clothing during special events. Men will wear their ribbon shirts and women will wear a tear dress.