Kevin+King


 * A: Plan of Investigation **

The question of this investigation is to what extent was the use of the Navajo Code beneficial to the war efforts in the Pacific during World War II? This will be done by explicitly explaining the situation before the code was created and then after. The main source in this investigation will be the book, //Navajo Code Talkers.// I will use this source along with others to answer my question.


 * B: Summary of Evidence **
 * __Declares war__ **
 * The day after Japan attacked the United States on December 7th, 1941, the U.S. declared war.
 * During the first year of combat, Japan controlled the majority of the Pacific ocean. Part of this was due to the lack of secret communication.

 **__The Idea__**
 * Military communication is essential to the success of any war.
 * Often, these communications are made through secret codes. However, both Japanese and U.S military intelligences were able to crack each other's codes. It was impossible for the U.S. to send codes without Japan cracking it and planning around it.
 * With Japan getting closer to Australia in 1942, the united states had to create a code that would prevent Japan from spreading any further.
 * The U.S. military tried to develop an unbreakable code but it was a civilian that first came up with the idea that changed the war.
 * His name was Philip Johnston from Los Angeles, California.
 * His idea was to use Native American languages for military communication (Aaseng 17).
 * Since Johnston’s parents were christian missionaries, he was more familiar with the Navajo language than any other whiteman in the country.


 * __Getting Started__ **
 * Johnston proposed his idea to Lieutenant Colonel who was at first skeptical of the language. However, Johnston managed to get the Lieutenant interested.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">After recruiting 30 young Navajo men, the U.S began creating a code.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">In most cases, a Navajo word was used to directly translate English words. They also used Navajo words that translated into English words and whatever letter the English word started with, that was what letter the Navajo stood for.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Initially, there were around 211 words that they would most likely have to use on the field. However, more were created as the war went on.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">When the Navajo code speaking men first were deployed, they were sent in one Navajo per unit and were located in Guadalcanal and other islands.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">C: Evaluation of Sources: **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">This is a written by author Nathan Aaseng. The purpose of the book is help the reader understand how the Navajo Code was made. It also talked about some of the challenges the new language faced. All the information given comes with accurate dating and locations.This source will help me better understand how the Navajo code was created. As much as it is important to understand how the code helped win the war in the Pacific, it is also important to understand the circumstances before the code was created. The US had made many codes and the Japanese quickly cracked them. Once the Navajo code was created, the U.S. began winning battles. This will help answer my thesis. The made it out to sounds like the the Navajo code was a major factor in the success of the war. However, in many of my other readings, the extent of the success created by the code was not as much. The book might have exaggerated the truth a bit.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Aaseng, Nathan. //Navajo Code Talkers//. New York: Walker, 1992. Print. **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">This article was written by Christopher Sterling. The purpose of this article is to describe how the code helped win the war against Japan. The article also mentioned some of the difficulties that the code faced when introducing it to soldiers over seas. This source will help me understand some of the things that hurt the codes success. It also ties into my thesis because it presents an opposing view. One limitation may be the fact that it failed to mention how the code was made.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Sterling, Christopher H. "Code Talkers: World War II." //World at War: Understanding Conflict and Society//. ABC-CLIO,2012. Web. 24 Apr. 2012. **


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">D. Analysis: **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">In 1941, when the United States declared war on Japan, they were weakened as a military due to the massive losses of the attack on Pearl Harbor. However, this attack also sent a wave of patriotism across the country. Almost every young healthy man enlisted in the war and was soon sent to basic training and eventually overseas. However, Japan seemed to have the upper hand for the first year of the war. Part of this was due to the lack of secret communication.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The military intelligence of both Japan and the United States were excellent at cracking each other’s secret messages. This was not good for the United States, because they were trying to take back most of the Pacific. That is when the military leaders decided that they needed to come up with something more effective. A civilian first came up with the idea to use the Navajo language in a code language. His name was Philip Johnston from Los Angeles, California. Johnston proposed his idea to Lieutenant Colonel who was at first skeptical of the language. However, Johnston managed to get the Lieutenant interested. After recruiting 30 young Navajo men, the U.S began creating a code. It was not an easy task but they managed to train this small group of men to use Navajo words in the place of military terms. The code was so good that a message could be translated with 100% accuracy, but Navajo men who were not trained to learn the code could understand it.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">When the Navajo code speaking men first were deployed, they were put in with one Navajo per unit and were located in Guadalcanal and other islands .When the code first started being used, none of the ground forces were prepared for it. Those who led the creation of the code failed to mention it to any of the unit leaders in the pacific. Often times, when trained code talkers were speaking the code, US soldiers thought the Japanese had taken over a radio. To the average soldier, it all sounded the same. On top of that, many soldiers thought these Navajo men looked like Japanese soldiers who were dressed in US clothing.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Despite the obstacles that the Navajo code faced, the code was an overall success. The code talkers were sent to South Pacific Islands like <span style="color: #0e0e0e; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Guadalcanal, Bougainville, Saipan, Guam, Palau and Okinawa <span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">. One of the most notable battles were the code was used was Iwo Jima. During that battle, the code talkers sent and received more then 800 messages with zero error. <span style="color: #0e0e0e; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Major Howard Connor, signal officer with the 5th Marine Division said, "were it not for the Navajos, the Marines never would have taken Iwo Jima,".

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The purpose of the code was to be a smooth flowing communication. Due to the remoteness of the Navajo language, the Japanese could never translate the code. This gave the US an advantage because they could crack the Japanese codes but never had to worry about Japan understanding their codes.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">E. Conclusion: **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The Navajo code played an important role in the war in the Pacific. In many ways, the code was a helpful tool when fighting a highly trained enemy like Japan. It might be too much to say that the code made the difference in winning the war, but it certainly made a difference. Despite its rough start, many US soldiers and leaders appreciated the sacrifice that the Navajo men gave to the war efforts.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">F. Bibliography: **

Aaseng, Nathan. //Navajo Code Talkers//. New York: Walker, 1992. Print.

"Secert code of battle." Scholastic News (Ed. 4). 10 Jan. 2000 eLibrary. Web. 10 May. 2012.

Regulatory Intelligence Data. NAVAJO CODE WENT UNBROKEN. Federal Document Clearing House,, 03 Dec. 1998.eLibrary. Web. 10 May. 2012.

Sterling, Christopher H. "Code Talkers: World War II." //World at War: Understanding Conflict and Society//. ABC-CLIO,2012. Web. 24 Apr. 2012.

U.S. Department of Defense Information / FIND. America's secret weapon: Navajo Code Talkers. U.S. Department of Defense Information / FIND,, 04 Nov. 2011. eLibrary. Web. 07 May. 2012.