--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My name is Mankiller, and in the old…" description: "\"My name is Mankiller, and in the old Cherokee Nation, when we lived here in the Southeast, we lived in semi-autonomous villages, and there was someone ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82f/wilma-mankiller-15802_ancestry_my-name-is-mankiller-and-in-the-old-cher_478727.jpg" --- # My name is Mankiller, and in the old Cherokee Nation, when… ![“My name is Mankiller, and in the old Cherokee Nation, when we lived here in the Southeast, we lived in semi-autonomous villages, and there was someone who watched over the village, who had the title of mankiller. And I'm not sure what you could equate that to, but it was sort of like a soldier or…” quote by Wilma Mankiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82f/wilma-mankiller-15802_ancestry_my-name-is-mankiller-and-in-the-old-cher_478727.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82f/wilma-mankiller-15802_ancestry_my-name-is-mankiller-and-in-the-old-cher_478727.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82f/wilma-mankiller-15802_ancestry_my-name-is-mankiller-and-in-the-old-cher_478727.jpg) > “My name is Mankiller, and in the old Cherokee Nation, when we lived here in the Southeast, we lived in semi-autonomous villages, and there was someone who watched over the village, who had the title of mankiller. And I'm not sure what you could equate that to, but it was sort of like a soldier or someone who was responsible for the security of the village, and so anyway this one fellow liked the title mankiller so well that he kept it as his name, and that's who we trace our ancestry back to.” [Wilma Mankiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilma-mankiller/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The title “Mankiller” historically denoted a village protector, akin to a soldier, and became a family name linking ancestry. **In simple terms:** Mankiller meant village guardian, later a surname. Key Takeaway Honor protective roles in heritage. Themes culture identity leadership Mood proud reflective Type historical cultural narrative When to use this quote - family gatherings - educational curricula - community storytelling Key Concepts tribal governance ancestral naming gender roles Questions to Reflect On - How does this title shape personal identity? - What lessons can be drawn for today’s leaders? A Different Perspective Modern equivalents may differ in meaning. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ancestry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancestry/) [Autonomous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/autonomous/) [Cherokee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cherokee/) [Nations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nations/) [Security](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/security/) [Soldier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soldier/) [Village](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/village/) ## Related quotes > [It affords me sincere pleasure to be able to apprise you of the entire removal of the Cherokee Nation of Indians to their new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-van-buren/it-affords-me-sincere-pleasure-to-be-able-to-apprise-you-of-the/) [Martin Van Buren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-van-buren/) > [“An old Cherokee is teaching his grandson about life.94 “A fight is going on inside me,” he said to the boy. “It is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arianna-huffington/an-old-cherokee-is-teaching-his-grandson-about-life-94-a-fight-is/) [Arianna Huffington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arianna-huffington/) > [It should be remembered that hundreds of people of African ancestry also walked the Trail of Tears with the Cherokee during the forced removal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilma-mankiller/it-should-be-remembered-that-hundreds-of-people-of-african-ancestry/) [Wilma Mankiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilma-mankiller/) > [We are a revitalized tribe. 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Give me strength for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/give-me-strength-not-to-be-better-than-my-enemies-but-to-defeat-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I come from a family of Cherokee master storytellers. Listening to stories, reading them, and creating new tales is my life. These tales reveal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-ann-barton/i-come-from-a-family-of-cherokee-master-storytellers-listening-to/) Louise Ann Barton > [Everything an Indian does is in a circle, and that is because the power of the world always works in circles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/black-elk/everything-an-indian-does-is-in-a-circle-and-that-is-because-the/) [Black Elk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/black-elk/) > [Lt. Carson: My grandmother was a full-bodied Cherokee Indian. Lili: How exciting. Lt. Carson: It was for my grandfather.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/lt-carson-my-grandmother-was-a-full-bodied-cherokee-indian-lili-how/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Wilma Mankiller > [Negative thoughts were treated by Cherokee healers with the same medicines as wounds, headaches, or physical illness. It was believed that unchecked negative thoughts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilma-mankiller/negative-thoughts-were-treated-by-cherokee-healers-with-the-same/) [Wilma Mankiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilma-mankiller/) > [Remember that I am just a woman who is living a very abundant life. Every step I take forward is on a path paved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilma-mankiller/remember-that-i-am-just-a-woman-who-is-living-a-very-abundant-life/) [Wilma Mankiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilma-mankiller/) > [A significant number of people believe tribal people still live and dress as they did 300 years ago. 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And I'm not sure what you could equate that to, but it was sort of like a soldier or someone who was responsible for the security of the village, and so anyway this one fellow liked the title mankiller so well that he kept it as his name, and that's who we trace our ancestry back to.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Wilma Mankiller" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilma-mankiller/my-name-is-mankiller-and-in-the-old-cherokee-nation-when-we-lived/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ancestry" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilma-mankiller/my-name-is-mankiller-and-in-the-old-cherokee-nation-when-we-lived/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82f/wilma-mankiller-15802_ancestry_my-name-is-mankiller-and-in-the-old-cher_478727.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82f/wilma-mankiller-15802_ancestry_my-name-is-mankiller-and-in-the-old-cher_478727.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82f/wilma-mankiller-15802_ancestry_my-name-is-mankiller-and-in-the-old-cher_478727.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“My name is Mankiller, and in the old Cherokee Nation, when we lived here in the Southeast, we lived in…” — Wilma Mankiller", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Wilma Mankiller", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilma-mankiller/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "My name is Mankiller, and in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilma-mankiller/my-name-is-mankiller-and-in-the-old-cherokee-nation-when-we-lived/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilma-mankiller/my-name-is-mankiller-and-in-the-old-cherokee-nation-when-we-lived/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```