[Aztlan] Southeastern US/Mesoamerican language contacts

[Nick Hopkins]

The sources that argue for a precolumbian Southwestern origin for the Cherokee syllabary fail to account for the obvious fact that many of Sequoya's characters are English letters, used of course with distinct values, but identical to printed letters right down to the serifs...  How in the world could those have been known to precontact Southwesterners?  And don't try to tell me they are an independent invention, or that they somehow derive from Mexican scripts.  I don't know the sources cited, but it strikes me that this is the kind of denigration of Indian achievements that was popular in the 19th century.  IMHO, Sequoya's invention of a unique writing system is one of the greatest intellectual achievements in recent history.

        



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