The Man Who Changed the World of His People

Named after Sequoia
I have read the text about Sequoia trees. They are giant, old, trees in the USA. Sequoias are redwood trees of California. They were named after a man called Sequoia.

A Cherokee Indian
Sequoia (Sequoyah, Sikwayi or Seqwaia) was a Cherokee Indian. He was a son of a an Indian woman and a white man. The boy knew Cherokee traditions but could not read and write. He was illiterate as all his people.

Talking Leaves
Sequoia liked to look at books of white people and called them “talking leaves”. Later he was the chief of the tribe. Sequoia was a clever man. He wanted to teach his people. He wanted to preserve Cherokee culture.

Cherokee Syllabary
So, he tried to make an alphabet for his people. It was not a usual ABC. Each symbol in it stands for one syllable. Sequoia worked on his syllabus for 12 years. He created 85 symbols. Sequoia used some symbols of Latin, Greek, Cyrillic and even Arabic ABCs.

An Important Invention
Sequoia’s first pupil was his daughter Ayoka. Sequoia demonstrated his creation to the clever and important people of his tribe. His people believed him and began to learn his syllabus. They began to open schools and teach their children.

The Way to Literacy
Later Cherokee Indians translated the Bible and made their own paper «Cherokee Phoenix». Many Cherokee people became literate and it helped them in life. They could read news and laws, understand the Bible. They could write the story of their tribe.

A Great Invention
Sequoia did much for his people. It was a great thing for an illiterate man. It is the only fact in the history of ABC making when one illiterate man did everything himself.

Cherokee and Their Language
Thanks to Sequoia his tribe did not die out. There are people of Cherokee tribe living in America now. Cherokee people use their language.

Another Story about an Alphabet
I have also read Kipling’s tales in Russian and liked them very much. Someday I will read them in English too. Most of all I liked «How the Alphabet Was Made». It also tells about making an alphabet for a tribe.

Someday I would like to go to the USA and visit the state of California. I would like to go to the national park and look at sequoia trees. I would like to take photos there.