Documentation:RelLex/Navajo Code Talkers' Dictionary
Navajo Code Talkers' Dictionary
| Relational Lexicography Knowledgebase | |
|---|---|
| |
| About RelLex | |
| An index of under-resourced North American language references, including print and digital dictionaries. | |
| Browse by | |
| About the Knowledgebase | |
| Find our filterable Knowledgebase of dictionaries and lexicography technology at https://knowledgebase.arts.ubc.ca/. | |
Language Name
Navajo.
Alternate Language Names
Navaho, Diné bizaad, Naabeehó bizaad.
Country, State/Province
United States, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah.
Who
US Marine Corps.
Others Involved
Navajo Code Talkers.
Publishing Information
This version published 2012.
How People are Cited
How Information is Cited
Where is Information Coming from
Tools and Framework used
Text.
Access
Print.
Included Languages and Directionality
Dialects Included
Type of Dictionary
How are Entries Organised
Other Features
| Feature | Included | More Information |
|---|---|---|
| Guide to use and understand | ✅❌ | |
| Audio | ✅❌ | |
| Images | ✅❌ | |
| Example phrases | ✅❌ | |
| Speakers marked | ✅❌ | |
| Dialects marked | ✅❌ |
Other Notes
From intelligence.gov: "Marine Corps leadership selected 29 Navajo men, the Navajo Code Talkers, who created a code based on the complex, unwritten Navajo language. The code primarily used word association by assigning a Navajo word to key phrases and military tactics. This system enabled the Code Talkers to translate three lines of English in 20 seconds, not 30 minutes as was common with existing code-breaking machines. The Code Talkers participated in every major Marine operation in the Pacific theater, giving the Marines a critical advantage throughout the war. During the nearly month-long battle for Iwo Jima, for example, six Navajo Code Talker Marines successfully transmitted more than 800 messages without error. Marine leadership noted after the battle that the Code Talkers were critical to the victory at Iwo Jima. At the end of the war, the Navajo Code remained unbroken."