Great Tellico
Great Tellico was a Cherokee town at the site of present-day Tellico Plains, Tennessee, where the Tellico River emerges from the Appalachian Mountains. Great Tellico was one of the largest Cherokee towns in the region, and had a sister town nearby named Chatuga (Syllabary: ᏣᏚᎦ). Its name in Cherokee is more properly written Talikwa (Syllabary: ᏖᎵᏉ), but more commonly known as Diligwa. It is sometimes spelled Telliquo, Telliquah or, in Oklahoma, Tahlequah. There were several Cherokee settlements named Tellico, the largest of which is distinguished from the others by calling it "Great". The meaning of the word "Talikwa" is thought to be lost by the Cherokees. However, in an article authored by reporter Tesina Jackson of the Cherokee Phoenix the meaning of the word is stated as "the open place where the grass grows".[1][2]
The Warrior Path— a branch of the
In the early 18th century, Great Tellico was the de facto capital of the Overhill Cherokee. Several prominent Cherokee leaders came from the town, such as Moytoy of Tellico. After his death in 1741, Great Tellico began to fade. By the 1750s, Chota was largely recognized as the principal town of the Overhill Cherokee.
References
- ^ They called their new home "Di li gwa," Tah-le-quah or Teh-li-co, "the open place where the grass grows."
- ^ "Diligwa village celebrates first anniversary".
- ^ Seibert, David. "Unicoi Turnpike historical marker". Digital Library of Georgia. Retrieved 13 October 2016.
- Mooney, James Myths of the Cherokee (1900, repr. 1995)
- Duncan, Barbara R. and Riggs, Brett H. Cherokee Heritage Trails Guidebook. University of North Carolina Press: Chapel Hill (2003). ISBN 0-8078-5457-3
External links
- The Unicoi Turnpike historical marker