The Gullah-Geechee and the Guale

Q: Does the name "Gullah" come from the Guale tribe, do they have Native American blood? Is the Geeche Gullah language mixed with Native American?

A: No, the Gullah are African-American people, and their creole language is a mix of English with West African languages. Since the Gullah community remained in the same region for generations instead of being broken up and moved from place to place like other enslaved groups, their unique culture survived the hardships of slavery and is still practiced today. The Gullah language (which is still spoken by some families today) is very interesting, but we do not have any resources about it ourselves--here are some good websites about the Gullah people and their language where you can learn more:
Gullah/Geechee Heritage
Gullah Language and Stories
The Gullah Creole
Being Gullah or Geechee
Gullah Storytelling

It is possible that the name "Gullah" could have indirectly come from "Guale," since an area of Georgia was named after the Guale tribe and some Gullah communities live in this region, so they might have adopted the place name as their own. However, it is more likely that the similarity in the names is a coincidence and that the Gullah people took their name from an African source. One of the websites above suggests that the name "Gullah" came from the same source as "Gola" in the West African country of Angola, where many Gullah people originated from. This seems plausible to us! In any case, there is no direct connection between the two communities, whose paths would never have had much chance to cross. The Guale tribe suffered a devastating epidemic in the 1600's century and dispersed into other tribes by the early 1700's, whereas the Gullah people began arriving in the 1700's and gained their freedom from slavery in 1865.

Hope that is interesting, have a great day!