"Tuckahoe" is an Algonquian word for the plant used by tribes of the coastal plains as a major food source. It only grows in freshwater marshes. The Cherokee are of Iroquoian linguistic stock; their language is vastly different from Algonquian languages. I've never known a Cherokee to claim "tuckaho" or "tuckahoe" as a Cherokee word or tribal band or clan name. "Tuckaho" isn't a word in the Cherokee language, according to my Cherokee-speaking friends. I've heard whites use the term referring to a tribe they were supposedly descended from, mostly on genealogical message boards. There is even a rootsweb list for people who think they descend from this non-existent tribe. The name is frequently linked to the "Melungeons" or called a "branch of the Cherokee". The ancestors these folks refer to were usually from West Virginia or New York. One person on one genealogical site stated that Tuckaho was another name for Pamunkey Indians who fled to West Virginia. This information would come as a surprise to the Pamunkey, who are still where they always were, in King William County, Virginia. Regarding the use of "Indians" vs "Native Americans", it's a personal preference thing that varies among various Native Nations and Native people. Our general preference is to be called by the name of our Nation rather than by a generic term that lumps Nations together. But I am speaking here of indigenous peoples ourselves, not those looking for ancestral links to indigenous peoples. On the other hand, the surname Tucker does appear on some Cherokee rolls in Oklahoma, or so I've been told. It's also a surname linked to the Nansemond in the 17th century, in which case it may have been taken on by Nansemond who were influenced by Capt. Robert Tucker. Hope this is somewhat helpful. In a message dated 7/31/2004 11:34:54 PM Eastern Daylight Time, PJF8468@aol.com writes: > My Tucker line is supposedly descended from the Tuckaho Indians, which > appears to be a branch of the Cherokee tribe. I used words like > "supposedly" and > "appears" because it's very hard to nail down solid proof. But I've come > across many Tucker descendents who have been told this very same thing. > Plus, my > mother's aunt remembered not being able to communicate with her grandmother, > > Leah (Tucker) Woodrum. Her grandfather stated that she was Tuckaho Indian, > etc. and didn't know English very well.