Indigenous Languages Support Linguistic Diversity
November 27, 2023
According to the Indigenous Language Institute, more than 300 indigenous languages were spoken from coast to coast with about 175 Native languages being spoken in the United States today. The mission of the ILI is to provide vital language related services to Native communities so their original language identities, traditional wisdom, and values are passed on to future generations.
One of the biggest barriers to developing written materials in Native languages has been the lack of an effective way to type in an indigenous language on computers and online. As partners with Languagegeek, the ILI provides free language software for mapping the unique characters of each writing system, including diacritics and special phonetic characters not available in English.
It is estimated that roughly half of the Native American languages north of Mexico have become extinct. Of those languages that are still being used today, over half are spoken by less than a 1,000 individuals. European colonization of North America was deleterious, as Native Americans lacked immunity to deadly diseases brought by settlers while many others were killed for their land. By the end of the nineteenth century indigenous populations dwindled from 10 million to 300,000.
Official Language of the United States
Although the most commonly used language is American English, the United States does not have an official language at the federal level. The next most spoken language in our country is Spanish. Some imported languages include multiple dialects, creole languages, pidgin languages, and American Sign Language. A majority of foreign language speakers commonly speak English and are often multilingual. It is estimated that over 400 unique languages are either spoken or signed.
According to a survey by the U.S. Census Bureau, the third most commonly used language in the United States is the collective varieties of Chinese. By comparison, the sample-based survey ranked Native languages of North America in 42nd and some respondents might have only limited speaking ability in those languages. Although it too has fewer speakers than noted in past surveys, the state of Hawaii recently made Hawaiian an official state language along with English.
Indigenous Languages Used by Code Talkers
According to the National Museum of the American Indian, Native American servicemen from more than 20 tribes used their indigenous languages to send and receive coded messages during World War I and World War II. Known as Code Talkers, these dedicated men helped U.S. forces achieve victory as the enemy was unable to break the coded transmissions.
Choctaw Code Talkers – The first Native American Indian code talkers served during World War I. The U.S. Army used nine tribal languages to transmit top-secret messages that German eavesdroppers were unable to decipher. The Choctaw, Cheyenne, Cherokee, Comanche, Ho-Chunk, Osage, and Yankton Sioux code talkers made such a lasting impression in 1918, it was quickly reinstated for World War II.
Navajo Code Talkers – The term Code Talker was originally coined by the United States Marine Corps but today the term is most often associated with the Navajo speakers that use their indigenous language to decipher bilingual code in all divisions of the Corps. Since Navajo has a complex grammar, it is not mutually intelligible with even its closest relatives. Plus, an estimate at the time suggested there were fewer than 30 non-Navajo who could understand the language at the outbreak of World War I.
Commanche Code Talkers – German authorities learned about code talkers during World War I and sent linguists to the U.S. to study Native American languages. But, before the Invasion of Normandy, seventeen Comanche soldiers using word substitution joined the 4th Signal Company. Due to the secrecy needed to protect the unique Navajo and Commanche systems, code talkers did not receive recognition until the late 60s for the important military role that indigenous tribes played during times of war.
The U.S. Marines operated the largest code-talker campaign during World War II with some 420 Navajo code talkers deployed in the Pacific, which included Comanche, Meskwaki, Chippewa, Oneida, and Hopi soldiers that specialized in radio communications. The Navajo code talkers possessed exceptional skills and were sometimes mistaken for ethnic Japanese radio operators. After several incidents of being captured by American soldiers, most were assigned personal body guards.
Preservation of American Indian Languages
Most American Indian people speak English today but collectively they still consider their traditional languages to be extremely important for cultural and tribal identity. But, like other threatened languages, once the last speaker of a language passes, the language can be gone forever. In 1997, the Indigenous Language Institute convened thirty language revitalization experts to create a “wish list” outlining a plan for bringing languages back into everyday tribal life.
Contrary to common misconceptions, Native American languages did not originate from a single protolanguage, like the Indo-European family did, and most relied on oral tradition as most written texts were destroyed.
Today, the ILI serves American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, First Nations of Canada, and have reached out to international indigenous communities. A network of people and organizations worldwide are coming together at ILI workshops where they are provided with the tools to help train Native language teachers and share experiences and knowledge with each other. In addition, several universities and tribal colleges are now teaching indigenous language courses.
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