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Cherokee Ancestry
According to the 2000 US census, 875,276 persons, out of a total population of 281,421,906 (0.31%) claimed at least mixed Cherokee ancestry: 302,569 (0.1%) identified as Cherokee, 572,707 more (0.2%) identified as being Cherokee and another ethnicity.

Some specified membership in a particular group: Cherokee of NE Alabama: 629, plus 229 of mixed ancestry Cherokee of SE Alabama: 707, plus 177 of mixed ancestry Eastern Cherokee: 8,451, plus 2,358 of mixed ancestry Echota Cherokee: 4,206, plus 1,752 of mixed ancestry Northern Cherokee Nation of Missouri and Arkansas: 1,664, plus 1,306 of mixed ancestry United Keetoowah Band: 496, plus 140 of mixed ancestry Western Cherokee: 6,693, plus 3,698 of mixed ancestry Southeastern Cherokee Council: 441, plus 150 of mixed ancestry Four Winds Cherokee: 580, plus 211 of mixed ancestry Other: 1416

Cherokee was the Native American identity most commonly reported to census workers in more than a third of the continental US. In the 2000 census, the states with the largest populations reporting Cherokee as their sole ancestry were: Oklahoma (97,317), California (27,131), Texas (16,596), North Carolina (13,002) and Florida (10,166).

Legal definitions
The three branches of the Cherokee who the US Department of the Interior has specifically recognized by name are the Cherokee Nation (also known as the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma), the Eastern Cherokee and the United Keetoowah Band, but federal and state law sometimes recognize other groups as American Indian tribes, and their members as American Indians.

Under Title 25, Chapter 18, Section 1603 of the US Code,

"(c) 'Indians' or 'Indian,' unless otherwise designated, means any person who is a member of an Indian tribe, as defined in subsection (d) of this section, except that, for the purpose of sections 1612 and 1613 of this title, such terms shall mean any individual who (1), irrespective of whether he or she lives on or near a reservation, is a member of a tribe, band, or other organized group of Indians, including those tribes, bands, or groups terminated since 1940 and those recognized now or in the future by the State in which they reside, or who is a descendant, in the first or second degree, of any such member, or (2) is an Eskimo or Aleut or other Alaska Native, or (3) is considered by the Secretary of the Interior to be an Indian for any purpose, or (4) is determined to be an Indian under regulations promulgated by the Secretary. (d) 'Indian tribe' means any Indian tribe, band, nation, or other organized group or community, including any Alaska Native village or group or regional or village corporation as defined in or established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (85 Stat. 688) [43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.], which is recognized as eligible for the special programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because of their status as Indians."

The Code of Federal Regulations, Title 42, Sec. 136.302, Department of Education Executive Orders, and many other federal laws and regulations use similar definitions.

At the same time, there have been several court rulings which held that only the federal government had the power to intervene in matters relating to Native Americans, so state recognition has been a hotly contested subject, with some of the strongest opposition coming from the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma.

There were also Cherokee who fled the United States, whose descendants are said to have been recognized as a tribe by the government of the state of Coahuila and the federal government of Mexico.

Some state-recognized Cherokee tribes, and the laws acknowledging them
Alabama (Alabama Code 41-9-708): United Cherokee Ani-Yun-Wiya Nation Alabama (other recognition ): Echota Cherokee Tribe of Alabama, Cherokee Tribe of Northeast Alabama

Georgia (Georgia Code 44-12-300(a)): The Georgia Tribe of Eastern Cherokee, The Cherokee of Georgia Tribal Council

Louisiana (House Concurrent Resolution 137, 1997): The Four Winds Cherokee Tribe

South Carolina : The Eastern Cherokee, Southern Iroquois & United Tribes of South Carolina

Unrecognized groups
There exist a large number of other groups that claim to be Cherokee, which in some cases present themselves as tribes. Debate about such groups is covered in the "Disputes" section below.

Freedmen dispute
The importance of Cherokee ancestry often surfaces as a debated topic. At the moment, the most prominent aspect of the debate revolves around descendants of persons who joined the tribe by marriage, or who were freed slaves of tribe members, whose blood quantum was not recorded when federal rolls of tribe members were compiled. Historically, the Cherokee Nation had occasionally adopted into the tribe members who were not ethnically Cherokee; the citizenship of the freedmen and Cherokees by marriage was agreed to in an 1866 treaty, and implied, but not explicitly stated, by the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma constitution of 1976. Efforts to remove them from the tribal rolls, through amendments to the constitution of 1976, have come under fire from a number of parties, ranging from the Congressional Black Caucus to the United Keetoowah Band. The constitution of 1976 required acquiescence from the federal government for any amendments, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs has, so far, withheld approval.

Opponents of the tribe's posture with regard to the Freedmen criticize what they see as the introduction of a racial component for tribal membership, not based on tribal tradition or precedent; proponents of the tribe's position defend the action as exercise of the tribe's traditional ability to vote on who is, or is not, a member.

Charges of Cultural Exploitation
As elsewhere in the Native American community, there is concern among the Cherokee about the appropriation and exploitation of their culture for commercial or other reasons. A number of groups which lack federal recognition have been attacked as historically or culturally dubious, as have certain individuals. When ancestry is in doubt, they are often referred to as "wannabes," when they are clearly of Native American descent they may be called "twinkies." Those who discuss or teach alleged Native American spiritual practices may be referred to as "plastic shamen" if they are perceived as non-traditional or otherwise inauthentic.

Contradictions in US law do little to clarify the situation. Blood quantum requirements vary between groups, with some requiring as much as 1/4 blood quantum, and others requiring any Cherokee ancestry whatsoever. Some federally-recognized tribes look askance at state-recognized tribes, whose members (along with their children and grandchildren) are still considered American Indians under some federal laws.