Cherokee

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Permalink Reply by Doug Bartley on May 11, 2011 at 9:10pm

(tried to reply once - didn't seem to work, this is attempt #2)

 

Hi, Pherbia - 

 

I would guess that there is some possibility considering the area

and how long the line has been in America. I don't have direct

ancestry to Caudill's or Cherokee (that I know of), but am related to some

Letcher County KY Caudill's from G-grandmother's generation or thereabouts.

OTOH - Stephen Caudill's (the "original" Caudill of this line, right?) wife was

a Fields, and I have a number of them way back, so maybe there's some

older connection, too.

 

When I first saw your name, it was the first I'd ever heard of it,

but when you mentioned Pheriba as an alternate spelling and

*that* sounded familiar but I couldn't recall from where, at first.

I did some checking and found out that Feriba and Fariba are

women's names in Iran and Turkey (maybe elsewhere, too).

Then, I remembered that I had often seen the sign for a belly

dancing school in Portland, Oregon (this was back in the 80's)

called Fariba's - I don't think it still exists, and don't know

where the owner was from. It looks like the Pherbia/Pheriba/Feraby

name has been in America since the late 1700's, anyway.

Have you ever tried to find out if it was used at all in the British

Isles?

 

Anyway, the whole subject of Appalachian women's names

looks pretty interesting - I've never heard my G-grandmother's

name of Dicy anywhere outside SE Kentucky, but it looks

not to have been uncommon around there. 

 

So, the name got me to thinking about Brent Kennedy's book about the

Melungeons and possible Iberian, N. African and Turkish origins

for them. Also, the Melungeons (some of them, anyway) appeared

to be associated with the Cherokee and Saponi Indians. 

 

 

Here is a site that deals with another family's exploration of their

Indian and Melungeon background:

http://www.bunchcousins.com/

 

The article "Mixing in the Mountains" on the Melungeon.org

site is also pretty informative.

 

So, no idea if this applies at all to your particular line, but it's

some pretty fascinating history, anyhow IMO

 

Good luck with your search!

 

Douglas