Shelby Miller-Sylvia


Outline

Thesis: The Navajo Indians in World War II provided a critical, life-saving service to their country by speaking their native tongue in communications that were unintelligible to the enemy.  By doing so they saved numerous American lives.
Title:    Navajo Code Talkers

I.    Introduction
A.    New Ideas in communication
B.    Why was so important
II.    Code talking in WWII
A.    Striking interest
B.    Navajo background
C.    How helped communication
D.    Use in war
E.    After battle
III.    Conclusion
A.    How affected war
B.    Positive aspect of use


Navajo Code Talkers

    The Navajo Indians in World War II provided a critical, life-saving service to their country by speaking their native tongue in communications that were unintelligible to the enemy.  By doing so they saved numerous American lives.  The importance of this contribution would not be appreciated till many years later.
        The attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 was the striking interest for Navajos to become active in the war effort. (7) In previous wars, such as World War I, Indians like the Choctaws provided help by “code talking.” (7) Beside the technique of “code talking” the most popular forms of communication were through codes made up of symbols which had assigned meanings that were written down in a codebook.  This was a very time consuming task.  It took almost two and a half hours to decode a message.  Another technique was ciphering; this is a combination of jumbled letters or numbers which when substituting one for another, would reveal the code. Cryptographers would devise these hidden messages to send information to their troops. (6,57)  However, there were serious pitfalls to this system of coding.  By repeating the same numbers in the same sequence cryptanalysts could eventually catch on to the technique of the system. Another clue was the location of the ship that was sending the message. The United States could measure the radio beams from the receiving sites to find where the Japanese ship was located. (6,60) What made the Navajo language so unique was the way in which it was spoken.  Their language is tonal and the way the words rise and fall changes the meaning of the word with the pitch.  Because the language is so difficult to pronounce, very few people have ever even attempted to learn it.  Only about twenty non-Navajos understand the language. (2,20)
    The Navajos lived on a territory approximately the size of West Virginia.  Fewer than forty thousand lived on this land. They lived in Hogans that had no electricity or plumbing.  Most Navajos herd sheep for a living before this new turn of events happened.  There weren’t many schools on their reservation either, explaining the lack of education that most had. An advantage for the marines was that Navajos were great night scouts as well as gorilla fighters. (8) The gorilla tactic of fighting is when you attack and then retreat not giving the opposition the chance to take a large number of men down.
    It was Philip Johnston’s idea to use the Navajo language as a part of military code.  He was a civil engineer, but grew up on the Navajo reservation with his parents who were missionaries. (8)  Johnston approached the colonel who was heading this operation and described his idea of using the Indian language.  He went into detail as to how they would not directly use the language but instead base a code around it. (2,20) Johnston’s idea included recruiting Navajos off the reservation to be trained to use the code.  When the colonel tried to repeat a Navajo sentence that Johnston had said to him he couldn’t come close to understanding its complicated pronunciation. (21) After this, the colonel decided he would give this code a chance.
    On February 21, 1942, four Navajos were brought to Camp Elliott to see if their language could be adapted into a code. (2,21) One Navajo would be given a sentence in English, which he would have to translate to Navajo and relay over the radio to another man in another room.  They would then have to decode the message and bring it back to the colonel in English. (2,22) Even though the Navajos were accurate and speedy, the officers were not sure they were willing to trust the lives of their men to the Navajos due to the way they had been treated in the past.  They did not understand why a group of people whom they had never helped would want to help them now. (8)
    The colonel had enough faith in the Navajos to begin the training process of the operation.  One of the requirements for becoming a code talker was that you had to be between the ages of eighteen and thirty.  There was no legal birth record kept on the Navajo reservation, which made it easy for one to lie about their age. (4,38) The weight limit however proved to be harder for the Navajos to reach.  The 122- pound requirement was tough to obtain because Navajos were naturally small in structure. (2,28) The search for Navajos to be recruited began in the boarding schools. (27) The literacy rate on the reservation was fairly low, but they were able to find 1,000 English/Navajo speaking Indians who fit the criteria. (2,21) Colonel requested 200 Navajos to go ahead with his plan, but only got authorized to use thirty. (2,23) However, out of the thirty authorized, only twenty-nine made it into the program. (2, pg. 28)
    On May 4, 1942, twenty-nine Navajos boarded a bus at Fort Defiance, which was headed for Fort Wingate.  This is where boot camp for the new recruits would be taking place.  The first day on the fort was left as a day of rest for the newly recruited. (2,30)  They were placed in an all-Navajo platoon, but were given the same requirements as the rest of the men in camp. (2, pg. 32)  While at boot camp they would have to at all times honor the buddy system.  Even for a task as simple as going to the restroom would require you to have a buddy. (2, pg. 38)  On a regular day of boot camp the new Navajos recruited were expected to do things such as stand at attention without questioning authority.  They had to march and do drills when commanded to do so, eat and sleep on a regular schedule, hike tremendous distances and participate in the learning of new maneuvers. (2, pg. 32)  The Navajos proved to be excellent with the handling of pistols and rifles as well as being very aware of the land.  They were sent into the desert for two days with only a canteen of water.  When everyone else had finished with their water, the Navajos still had a plentiful supply left.  They had used their knowledge of nature to drain the water out of cactus plants. On June 27, 1942, twenty-nine Navajos successfully graduated boot camp. (2, pg. 34)  
    Boot camp had been tough for the Navajos, but their assignment would prove to be even more difficult.  They were told to construct an alphabet based on their native language.  They also would have to figure out Navajo words to replace military terms, which were not in the Navajo vocabulary.  After doing this they would have to memorize all the terms, so making the terms as short as possible would make the job of memorization easier. (6,60)  The Navajo language was primarily oral and the colonel told them to keep it that way. (8)
    First, the original twenty-nine has to agree on a universal pronunciation of the code. (2, pg. 40)  They chose simple words to stand for each letter of the alphabet.  For example, ‘ant’ stood for the letter ‘A’, ‘bear’ was ‘B’ and ‘C’ was ‘cat’.  (6, pg. 52)  They came up with all twenty-nine letters and what they would stand for in only one day. (2, pg. 40)  Next they created 211 Navajo words that would substitute the most frequently used military terms. (2, pg. 41)  Once again, to make memorization easier they chose very simple words that related or described the term being used. Bombs were eggs because eggs explode when dropped.  Grenades were potatoes because of the similar appearance and tanks were turtles also because of similar appearance. (2, pg. 43)  Thinking of Navajo words to replace all of the military terms needed was a hard task.  The original twenty-nine called in three more Navajos who were college educated for help. (2, pg. 41)  When all of the terms were complete they decided for safety purposes to add two alternate terms for each of the six most commonly used letters: E, T A, O, I and N. (2, pg. 50) Later they added more vocabulary terms so each letter besides Q, S, U, V, W, X, Y and Z each had three substitute words each. (2, pg. 51)  This strategy was devised in order for the code not to be as easily deciphered.
    In the classrooms the new terms were constantly being tested. (2, pg. 41)  When the code was finished, Navy Intelligence spent three weeks trying to decode a single message, but was not successful. (8) Navajos proved to the marines that they could code and decode messages faster then any black box. (8) All material that was written in class was locked in a safe at the end of the day to insure absolute security. (2, pg. 38)  Navajos also received signal crops, Morse code, panel code and signal flag training.  In addition they needed to be familiar with field telephones and radios as well as combat training. (2, pg. 45)  In class, John Benally and Johnny Manuelito got exceptional markings and were asked to stay behind and become instructors at the Navajo school. (2, pg. 50)
    The school would be set up as an eight-week course made up of three stages.  The first stage would consist of memorizing the alphabet as well as the 211 vocabulary words.  They would learn approximately twenty-five words per day.  They would be graded on their spelling, penmanship and knowledge of the terms.  Second stage would be mostly the practice of sample operations.  They would relay messages over and over again to work on consistency.  Their grades were based on speed and how accurately the message was given.  The third and final stage was spent on field exercises.  This is where they would actually go out and work on the operation and care of equipment. (2, pg. 50)
    At the end of camp the Navajos asked for twenty dollars so that they could perform a ceremonial dance at Camp Elliott before leaving for battle.  The colonel granted the permission to do so. (2, pg. 52)  Many Navajos held ceremonies called Blessingways as part of Navajo tradition. (2, pg. 29)  Blessingways were to “ensure good luck, good health, and everything that is good-including beauty, harmony, success, perfection, well-being, order and balance.” (2, pg. 30)  As part of another Navajo tradition it was forbidden to cut their hair before a battle.  However, it was part of military rule to shave the head.  One Navajo volunteered to cut his hair before entering battle.  That very day, he was shot in the forehead and killed.  From that point on they made it optional for Navajos to shave their head. (2, pg. 66)
    Denih, or the people, were what he Navajos were referred to in English, were now ready for battle. (8) They had been training extensively in many areas of war.  The Navajos were critical in some of the major battles in World War II by quickly doing what they did naturally which was speak their native language. (5) On the first two days of battle in Iwo Jima alone, 800 messages were sent and received without a single error. (8) Men put their lives on the ability that these Navajos would provide them with the correct directions in the middle of intense combat. (2, pg. 56)
    Once the code started being used confusion set in.  At first it was thought that the Japanese were tapping into the radio lines and trying to confuse the Americans with fake messages.  To solve this problem a plan was devised that before a Navajo would begin to transmit a message he would first introduce it by saying the Navajo word for either “New Mexico” or “Arizona.”  This was to let the code talker receiving the message know it was a legitimate American message. (2, pg. 63)  Japanese women would also tap into the American radio lines, and using American accents, use propaganda to lower American morale. (2, pg. 79)
    On the battlefield Navajos worked in teams of two. (2, pg. 71)  They were always placed on the frontline, which made things very confusing because of all the action taking place. (8) (3) They were so important they were often given no sleep at all. (5) To ensure the Navajos would not fall into the hands of the enemy they were given bodyguards. (5) The guard and the Navajo had no special relationship, they were just there to protect them.  They mostly just hung around to talk to them and keep them company. (5) Between major invasions Navajos would group together and update the code. (8) They were trusted with top-secret messages that told them where, when and how a battle would happen. (3) Each message was only known by four people at the very most. (3) The downfall of Navajo code talkers were that they resembled Japanese soldiers and periodically would be captured because they were thought to be impersonating Americans. (2, pg. 75) The Japanese used well-trained communicators who could speak English to try to retrieve American directions. (7) With the code talkers, their task was not possible.  
    Unfortunately this was a war and there were casualties.  Harry Tsosie was the first code talker to die.  He was shot by friendly fire from a Navy Medic.  He had gotten up in the middle of the night and was mistaken for the enemy.  Tsosie was the only one of the original twenty-nine to be killed in battle.  However, eleven certified code talkers were killed in World War II. (2, pg. 79)  More than 3,600 Navajos were active in World War II and out of those 3,600, 420 were code talkers. (8) Navajo code talkers were responsible for the saving of numerous American lives. (7) The secret behind the story became the most successful, as well as the most guarded military secret of all time. (7)
    Its unfortunate that even after their courageous effort they still did not get the recognition they deserved.  In Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico Indians voting rights were still being limited. (8) Following the World War II, when asking a Navajo about his contribution to war he would simply say they were radio men as they were told to do so. (8) The Navajos were so deeply scared by their time served that even fifty years later when asked about their time spent they would respond with a deadly pause. (8)
    The Navajos secret was kept for twenty-three years after the end of war.  It was finally declassified in 1968.  It is regarded as one of the most important accomplishments of war. (1) Navajos later adopted special uniforms, which they created themselves.  They are a turquoise cap, gold velveteen shirt and khaki trousers.  Later, they switched the turquoise cap with a red one.  The code talkers also adopted a special logo and flag. (2, pg. 106)  Now code talkers often walk in ceremonial parades to honor their heroic efforts many years ago.  In 2000, the original twenty-nine code talkers were awarded with the congressional gold medal.  The others were awarded with congressional silver medals. (1) It seems a shame it took so long for them to be recognized.
    When looking back on World War II it is remarkable to see how much of an impact the Navajos made.  They contributed a whole new way of communication that in turn helped the U.S. win a war.  At this point in time, the Navajos were not even being treated as first class citizens. They lived on minimal pieces of land with close to no means of existence.  Even though the United States had put no effort towards helping the Indians make a living, the Navajos put that behind them and fought for their country.  The Marines were in fact skeptical to use Navajos at first because they knew Americans had done nothing to help this group of people, but the Navajos lived in the United States too and this was their war to fight also.  The job put in front of the Navajos was difficult, but they knew that the turnout of the war would rest on their shoulders.  They accepted this responsibility and the out come was phenomenal.  This was an event that truly shaped how Americans could work together to succeed.

“We, the Navajo people, were very fortunate to contribute our language as a code for our country’s victory.  For this I strongly recommend we teach our children the language our ancestors were blessed with at the beginning of time. It is very sacred and represents the power of life.” –Kee Etsicitty, Code Talker. 3rd Division    
    
    
    

Work Cited

(1) Davis, Michael. "War of Words" Albuquerque Journal. November 21, 2002
     
          HTTP://elibrary.bigchalk.com/libweb/elib

(2) Durrett, Deanne. Unsung Heroes of World War II: The Story of the Navajo Code

          Talkers. New York, NY: Facts on File, 1998
(3) Hill, Jean Laquidara. "Code Talker recalls how Navajos helped win a war." Telegram                    & Gazette-Worcester. South County. Local News: B1. 13 November 2002.
         HTTP://elibrary.bigchalk.com/libweb/elib
(4) McClain, Sally. Navajo Weapon: The Navajo Code Talkers. Tucson, Arizona: Rio    Nuevo Pub., 2001
(5) Navajo Code Talkers Honored in D.C. Stephen Frazier, Eileen O'Connor. CNN Live This Morning. Cable News Network, Inc. 26 September, 2001
         HTTP://elibrary.bigchalk.com/libweb/elib
(6) Russell, Francis. The Secret War. Chicago, Illinois: Lifetime Books Inc., 1981
(7) Senator Jeff Bingaman's Navajo Code Talkers. 4 February 2003. Washington, DC.
            HTTP://bingaman.senate.gov
(8) Watson, Bruce. "Navajo Code Talkers: A Few Good Men." Smithsonian. August 1993. Volume 24. (No. 5) 34-40, 42-44

Return to Menu