Cherokee descent

Individuals with some degree of documented Cherokee descent who do not meet the criteria for Cherokee tribal citizenship may describe themselves as "being of Cherokee descent" or as "being a Cherokee descendant". These terms are also used by non-Native individuals whose ancestry has not been independently verified.
According to Gregory D. Smithers, a large number of Americans describe themselves in this way: "In 2000, the federal census reported that 729,533 Americans self-identified as Cherokee. By 2010, that number increased, with the Census Bureau reporting that 819,105 Americans claimed at least one Cherokee ancestor." By contrast, as of 2012 there were only 330,716 enrolled Cherokee citizens.

Citizenship

There are three federally recognized Cherokee tribes: the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina, the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma, and the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma. Enrollment criteria are different for each nation.

Eastern Band citizenship requirements are as follows:
United Keetoowah Band requirements are as follows:
Cherokee Nation requirements are as follows:

Social recognition

Kim TallBear, author of Native American DNA: Tribal Belonging and the False Promise of Genetic Science, says that Indigenous identity is not about any distant ancestor, but rather political citizenship, culture, kinship, and daily, lived experience as part of an Indigenous community.
She states that while DNA can indicate one's biological relatives, actual tribal membership is a legal category based on complex understandings of family relations, governmental and tribal rules, and reservation histories.

Reasons for self-identification without citizenship or social recognition

Self-identification occurs when a person states that they have Indigenous identity or descent with no confirmation or acceptance from the tribe they claim. There are many reasons people may self-identify as Cherokee or as Cherokee descendants without meeting enrollment criteria and without being part of the Cherokee community:

Many Cherokee heritage groups, organizations that explore and appropriate aspects of Cherokee history and culture, exist across the US, as well as unrecognized tribes and other organizations, with one estimate putting the combined number as high as 200. Membership in these groups, in some cases, requires genealogical proof of Cherokee ancestry, but many others have no requirements at all.
Many non-Indigenous American families, especially those with roots in the South, have a family folklores and oral histories of Cherokee ancestry. This has sometimes been called "Cherokee Princess Syndrome" or having a "blood myth".
Many Americans suggest Cherokee descent to explain physical traits that they believe are evidence of non-European or non-African ancestries, such as "high cheek bones", tan skin, straight dark hair, and keloid scars. Henry Louis Gates Jr. suggests that, in the case of African Americans, this can sometimes be a more tolerable explanation for these physical features than the realities of slavery and rape.
Anthropologist Kim TallBear describes some individuals asserting Native American ancestry based on DNA testing, who begin searching for "Cherokee ancestral lines" after this. She states, however, "There is no DNA test to prove you're Native American", and that this group mostly continues to identify as white.

Issues with descent-based identity claims

Individuals who claim Cherokee descent do not meet the criteria necessary to claim Native American identity under the provisions of the American Indian Arts and Crafts Act, except for those enrolled in one of the seven state-recognized tribes who identify as Cherokee.
The academic Joel W. Martin noted that "an astonishing number of southerners assert they have a grandmother or great-grandmother who was some kind of Cherokee, often a princess", and that such myths serve settler purposes in aligning American frontier romance with southern regionalism and pride.