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Gullah Culture in America
A history of the rich culture of the Gullah people–a story of upheaval, endurance, and survival in the Lowcountry of the American South.
Gullah Culture in America chronicles the history and culture of the Gullah people, African Americans who live in the Lowcountry region of the American South. This book, written for the general public, chronicles the arrival of enslaved West Africans to the sea islands of South Carolina and Georgia; the melding of their African cultures, which created distinct creole language, cuisine, traditions, and arts; and the establishment of the Penn School, dedicated to education and support of the Gullah freedmen following the Civil War.
Original author Wilbur Cross, writing in 2008, describes the ongoing Gullah the preservation of the culture sheltered in a rural setting, the continued influence of the Penn School (now called the Penn Center) in preserving and documenting the Gullah Geechee cultures. Today, more than 300,000 Gullah people live in the remote areas of the sea islands of St. Helena, Edisto, Coosay, Ossabaw, Sapelo, Daufuskie, and Cumberland, their way of life endangered by overdevelopment in an increasingly popular tourist destination.
For the second edition of this popular book, Eric Crawford, Gullah Geechee scholar, has updated the text with new information and a fresh perspective on the Gullah Geechee culture.
Gullah Culture in America chronicles the history and culture of the Gullah people, African Americans who live in the Lowcountry region of the American South. This book, written for the general public, chronicles the arrival of enslaved West Africans to the sea islands of South Carolina and Georgia; the melding of their African cultures, which created distinct creole language, cuisine, traditions, and arts; and the establishment of the Penn School, dedicated to education and support of the Gullah freedmen following the Civil War.
Original author Wilbur Cross, writing in 2008, describes the ongoing Gullah the preservation of the culture sheltered in a rural setting, the continued influence of the Penn School (now called the Penn Center) in preserving and documenting the Gullah Geechee cultures. Today, more than 300,000 Gullah people live in the remote areas of the sea islands of St. Helena, Edisto, Coosay, Ossabaw, Sapelo, Daufuskie, and Cumberland, their way of life endangered by overdevelopment in an increasingly popular tourist destination.
For the second edition of this popular book, Eric Crawford, Gullah Geechee scholar, has updated the text with new information and a fresh perspective on the Gullah Geechee culture.
255 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 7, 2023
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January 7, 2026
This was an eye-opening book: I had no idea about the Gullah Geechee people or their culture, or even of the Sea Islands along the coast running from southern North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia into northern Florida.
The Africans who were transplanted into this region were essentially geographically isolated from other enslaved people, so didn’t adapt to the local environments as others had to do. Instead they maintained their homeland traditions, making the Gullah people unique. Information presented in this book about the culture of the Gullah people includes their history, religious activities, medicine and healing, language, foods, celebrations and music and dance, as well as their renown sweetgrass baskets.
In 2006 this area was designated by the federal government as the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor and is maintained in conjunction with the National Park Service. The corridor encompasses the Sea Islands and extends inland approximately 30 miles and includes several specific sites which promote the history and various cultural features of the Gullah people in a variety of ways.
The Africans who were transplanted into this region were essentially geographically isolated from other enslaved people, so didn’t adapt to the local environments as others had to do. Instead they maintained their homeland traditions, making the Gullah people unique. Information presented in this book about the culture of the Gullah people includes their history, religious activities, medicine and healing, language, foods, celebrations and music and dance, as well as their renown sweetgrass baskets.
In 2006 this area was designated by the federal government as the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor and is maintained in conjunction with the National Park Service. The corridor encompasses the Sea Islands and extends inland approximately 30 miles and includes several specific sites which promote the history and various cultural features of the Gullah people in a variety of ways.
Displaying 1 of 1 review