Navajo Code Talkers
Transcript of Navajo Code Talkers
Navajo Code Talkers
What did they do for the war effort?
Where did the idea of using the Navajo language
come from?Philip Johnston
Engineer and veteran of WWI Son of a Navajo missionary Knew Navajo customs and language fluently Knew the military was looking for a new
communication code to use against the Japanese Successfully presented his idea to the Marine
Corps and it begun in the spring of 1942
The Navajo Language
Spoken only by the Navajos in their reservations in the Southwest
At the time was an unwritten languageComplex: no alphabet or symbolsTonal: vowels rise and fall when pronounced
and change meaning with pitchThe language represents the Navajos’
relationship with the world around them
The Code
Why are secret communications important in a war?
Navajos had to learn military terms in English first.
Had to create Navajo equivalent for the term. (Many words were not in their language.)
For secrecy no written code was allowed in battle - they had to memorize each word.
4 Basic Rules for Memorization
The code words had to have some kind of logical connection to the term to which they referred
Code words had to be unusually descriptive
Code words had to be shortThey had to avoid words that could be
confused with similar words
Examples of Military Navajo Words
Major General = So-na-kih (Two Stars)Observation Plane = ine-ahs-jah (Owl)Battleship = Lo-tso (Whale)Submarine = Besh-lo (Iron Fish)
Alphabet CodeNavajo did not have a written language.the Navajo words "wol-la-chee" (ant), "be-la-
sana" (apple) and "tse-nill" (axe) all stood for the letter "a.”
Why would they use more than one word for the same letter?
In order to say "Navy" in Navajo Code they could say, "tsah (needle) wol-la-chee (ant) ah-keh-di- glini (victor) tsah-ah-dzoh (yucca)."
Recognition
Not recognized until 1969 after the code was declassified in 1968
Received bronze medallions1982: Bruce King, Governor of New Mexico,
proclaimed April 10th as the New Mexico Code Talker Day. Later in that same year, President Ronald Reagan made August 14th as National Code Talker Day.
1989: Memorial in Phoenix, ArizonaFlute was a Navajo communications tool that
signaled the end of confrontation and coming of peace.
Congressional Gold and Silver Medals (2001)
Sen. Jeff Bingaman - “Honoring the Code Talkers Act”
President Bush presented the Navajo Code Talkers with Congressional Medals.