The Navajo Code Talkers were a group of Navajo men and women, who enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in World War II. They developed a code based on their native language that was used to send encrypted messages during the war.
The code talkers were a highly valued asset to the Allied forces and played a pivotal role in the U. S. victory.
The original group of Navajo Code Talkers included about 400 enlisted men, but during WWII, the total number increased to about 670.
The most famous and recognized of the Navajo Code Talkers include:
• Chester Nez: Nez was one of the original 29 Navajo Code Talkers who developed the code. He served with the U.S. Marines in the Pacific Theater and was honorably discharged in 1945.
• Jonas Penton: Penton was an original member of the Navajo Code Talkers. He was awarded the Silver Star for distinguishing himself in battle by delivering confidential operational messages.
• Kayty Begaye: Begaye was also an original member of the Navajo Code Talkers. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps as a Navajo Code Talker for two years during WWII.
• Alfred K. Newman: Newman was one of the original 29 Navajo Code Talkers and served with the U. S. Marines in the South Pacific. He was posthumously honored with a Bronze Star Medal for his courageous service.
• Lee Eliosa Chee: Chee was a Navajo Code Talker who served in the Battle of Iwo Jima. He was honored with a Purple Heart and Good Conduct Medal for his service.
• Peter MacDonald: MacDonald was the chairman of the Navajo Nation Council and a former Navajo Code Talker. He received the Congressional Silver Medal in 2001 for his service during WWII.
• Clarence Wolf Guts: Wolf Guts served on the USS San Francisco during the Battle of Guadalcanal. He was also awarded with a Congressional Silver Medal for his service as a Code Talker.
Has Navajo code been broken?
No, the Navajo code has not been broken. Navajo was used by the U. S. military during World War II and is considered unbreakable. It was invented by Phillip Johnston, a Civil Engineer, and drew from his own knowledge of the Navajo language, which he had grown up speaking.
The code was incredibly successful, allowing the Navajo Code Talkers to relay critical strategic and tactical information without fear of enemy listening in or understanding the messages they were sending.
The code was created by carefully selecting words and terms unique to Navajo culture and language, and unlike other known codes, it had no designated codewords; each message was created spontaneously by the Code Talkers.
The code was so successful because it was never written down, it depended on the memory of the Code Talkers, making it impossible for anyone else to understand. Today it is widely accepted that even with modern deciphering techniques, the Navajo code is still unbreakable.
Are there any surviving Code Talkers?
Yes, there are surviving Code Talkers. After World War II, many Native American tribes formed an organization known as the National Indian War Veterans and continued to honor the Code Talkers with annual commemorations.
Today, the Navajo Nation and many other tribes are actively involved in preserving the memories and honoring the veterans who served as Code Talkers during the war. Additionally, there are around twenty Code Talkers who are still living, many of whom were born in the 1920s.
These veterans can often be seen participating in various activities within the Navajo community, such as attending powwows and travelling to national public events.
Aside from living members, there are several memorials and monuments erected as a way of remembering the contributions of the Code Talkers. In 1984, the U. S. government honored the Navajo Code Talkers with Congressional Gold Medals, the highest civilian award in the U. S.
In 2001, Presidentd George W. Bush honored all Code Talkers in the National Code Talkers Day. To this day, the stories of the Code Talkers continue to be remembered and celebrated by the peoples of all the tribes they represented.
How many Navajo Code Talkers were killed in action?
Unfortunately, records of how many Navajo Code Talkers were killed in action during World War II are incomplete, as many casualties were never officially recorded. However, historians and advocates of the Code Talkers estimate that at least 16 were killed in action, while six died due to sickness or injuries.
The Navajo Nation established the Navajo Code Talkers Fund in 2013 to both honor the Code Talkers and to document the individual stories and contributions of each Code Talker, including, sadly, any casualties among them.
As of May 2018, there were 41 confirmed deaths, of which, 36 are confirmed to have been killed in action.
Did any Navajo Code Talkers get captured?
No, none of the original Navajo Code Talkers were captured during their time of service. During World War II, over 400 Navajo men volunteered to serve in the U. S. Marine Corps as Code Talkers. This group developed an unbreakable code that was used to send secret messages during battles.
Their code was so effective that the U. S. military kept it a closely-guarded secret until 1968, when the first members of the group were honored publicly.
The Navajo Code Talkers were an essential asset that allowed troops to effectively strategize and coordinate actions in the face of enemy threats, including the Japanese troops in many Pacific battles.
The Code Talkers were trained to transmit messages over military radio networks while avoiding detection and interception by the enemy. They stayed behind enemy lines, but despite the danger, none of the original Code Talkers were ever captured or killed.
Are the Navajo still alive?
Yes, the Navajo people are still alive and vibrant today. The Navajo Nation is the largest tribe in the United States with a population of over 300,000 and a land base of over 27,000 square miles. The Navajo Nation is located within the states of Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah.
The Navajo are known to be a resilient, culturally-rich people who have managed to survive despite the many hardships faced over the centuries. In recent years, their economy has diversified due to the emergence of businesses and organizations that are run by Navajo citizens.
Furthermore, the nation has made significant strides in education, health care, and economic development, providing Navajo citizens with greater opportunities for success. The Navajo people remain deeply connected to the cultural beliefs, languages, and traditions that have been passed down through generations, ensuring that the legacy of the Navajo Nation carries on for many years to come.
Why couldn’t the Japanese break the Navajo code?
The Japanese were never able to break the Navajo code because it was so unique and complex. The code was essentially a spoken language developed by the Navajo people for military communication during World War II.
The code talkers created a unique lexicon of terms and a complex cipher system to create their own distinct form of the English language. Navajo is a highly complex language that had no written form, making it almost impossible to decode.
Furthermore, the code talkers had to be Navajo speakers, meaning only a few hundred people in the world had the ability to communicate using the code. This made it almost impossible for outsiders to accurately break the coded messages.
In addition, the code talkers constantly changed the language so that it remained impenetrable to the enemy. This ensured that the information they were sending and receiving was confidential at all times.
All in all, the combination of factors made it virtually impossible for the Japanese to break the Navajo code and use it against the Allies.
What race were the Code Talkers?
The Code Talkers were members of the Indigenous peoples of the United States, specifically members of the Navajo, Choctaw, Comanche, Hopi, and other Native tribes, who were recruited by the U. S. Military during World War II to use their traditional tribal language as a secret code for secure communications.
During the War, almost 400 Code Talkers were recruited – mostly Navajo – and were instrumental in helping the Allies win a number of battles against the Japanese in the Pacific theater of the war. The idea for recruit Native Americans as Code Talkers originated with Philip Johnston, a World War I veteran who had grown up on the Navajo Nation near Fort Defiance, Arizona, and had become fluent in the native language.
What kind of Indians were the Windtalkers?
The Windtalkers were a group of Native Americans, mainly from the Navajo Nation, who played a critical role in World War II. The United States Marine Corps recruited them to become radio operators, using their native language to communicate messages deemed critical to military operations.
The language was too difficult for the Japanese to break and thus, allowed the United States to communicate without the Japanese overhearing. Looking for a way to help the war effort, some twenty-nine young men from the Navajo nation stepped forward to form a code that would prove to be unbreakable.
These men became known as the Windtalkers, taking their name from the code talkers’ ability to transmit and receive messages via the wind. Utilizing words from their native language and either adding or deleting syllables; they created a hidden code impervious to enemy deciphering.
The result of their code was a military victory in the Pacific as well as United States’ history.
Is Windtalkers based on a true story?
Yes, Windtalkers is based on a true story. The movie is based on the Marine Corps Navajo code talkers of World War II. During the war, the Marine Corps recruited hundreds of Navajo Code Talkers to use their unique language in relaying critical messages during combat operations.
The Code Talkers developed a code based on their language that was never deciphered by the enemy during the war. This brave and highly succesful military operation is at the center of the plot of Windtalkers.
The movie follows the life of two Navajo Code Talkers and the battles they had to fight, both on and off the battlefield. They are supported by a Marine corporal whose job it was to protect the Code Talker from capture by the enemy.
Many real-life Navajo Code Talkers were consulted during the movie’s production to ensure accuracy of the story.
