The Algonquian people are the traditional guardians of the land on which people work and live in northeast North Carolina, and they maintain a continuing connection to the land, water, and air there. Respect is paid to North Carolina’s eight state-recognized tribes—Coharie, Eastern Band of Cherokee, Haliwa-Saponi, Lumbee, Meherrin, Occaneechi Band of Saponi, Sappony, and Waccamaw-Siouan—as well as to all Nations and their elders past, present, and emerging.