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This appears to be an actual lie, but I've read that most people in the U.S. who sincerely believe themselves to have American Indian ancestry do not actually have any.

Posted by Joe (@joe) on Feb. 10, 2025, 2:29 p.m.

Excluding Latinos, Americans who are not tribal citizens but who believe that they have Indian ancestors usually don’t. “Cherokee” is the most common identification for people with fake blood lore, but it could be something else. Jimi Hendrix and Johnny Cash apparently didn’t have real Indian ancestry, but believed that they did. People have done genealogical research on alot of the famous people who made blood lore claims, and it’s nearly always false.