Солтүстік Каролинадағы Чероки қаласы және Шығыс Шеруки тайпасының орталығы

Cherokee '/tʃ//ɛr//ə/,/k//iː/ is a census designated place (CDP) in Swain and Jackson counties in Western North Carolina, United States, within the Qualla Boundary land trust. Cherokee is located in the Oconaluftee River Valley around the intersection of U. S. Routes 19 and 441. As of the 2020 census, the CDP had a population of 2,195. It is the capital of the federally recognized Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, one of three recognized Cherokee tribes and the only one in North Carolina. The community also serves as a tourist destination, with numerous campgrounds, motels, and hotels serving visitors to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, with a major entrance to the park lying within the community. The Cherokee Historical Association runs the Oconaluftee Indian Village, a living history museum, as well as the popular outdoor drama Unto These Hills, and is associated with the Museum of the Cherokee People. Cherokee serves as the southern terminus of the Blue Ridge Parkway. The Oconaluftee River flows through the town and is popular for tubing.

Cherokee is the capital of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and part of the traditional homelands of the Cherokee people. In the 1870s, the Eastern Band purchased the land for what is called the "Qualla Boundary". To continue the heritage of the Cherokee in the town, several signs for Cherokee's streets and buildings are written in both Cherokee syllabary and English. As a census designated place (CDP), Cherokee overlaps most or part of three of the seven communities of the Qualla Boundary: Painttown, Wolftown, and Yellowhill.

Cherokee and its surrounding Qualla Boundary is in the very mountainous Swain and Jackson counties. The highest elevation is 6643 feet (2025 m) Clingman's Dome at the border with Tennessee. Clingman's Dome is the highest point in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The Oconaluftee River flows through downtown Cherokee.

+Cherokee racial composition Race Number Percentage White (non Hispanic) 206 9.38% Black or African American (non Hispanic) 20 0.91% Native American 1,643 74.85% Asian 27 1.23% Other/Mixed 151 6.88% Hispanic or Latino 148 6.74%
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 2,195 people, 867 households, and 561 families residing in the CDP.

Cherokee Central Schools operates the K–12 public schools. Cherokee High School is the local high school. The private elementary school, New Kituwah Academy, is based on language immersion in Cherokee. Previously the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) provided educational services, and in their schools students were not permitted to speak Cherokee.

Scenes from movies such as Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier, Digging to China, Forces of Nature, The Fugitive, and Stroszek were shot in Cherokee.

The Cherokee One Feather newspaper has served the community for decades.