Think of an earlier time, when slave ships sailed into the ports of Charleston and Savannah. What they thought we brought were slaves, but what they didn't know was that they were bringing a rich culture that would flourish for a time. Throughout the ages, people have always claimed that Gullah is just a language, when Gullah is actually a way of life. Gullah heritage is revealed through their history, culture and language. Gullah itself dates back to the era of slavery, when African Americans were captured and brought to America to be sold into slavery. Southern rice planters needed labor on their rice plantations and believed that “slaves were far more profitable than any other form of labor” (Sumpter 1). They also chose blacks because they were resistant to tropical fevers, where Europeans were not. Jenkins stated that "at the outbreak of the Civil War, plantation owners abandoned their plantations along with their slaves" (Jenkins 306), leaving them with the military occupation of the North. The Northerners ...