s - Wyższa SzkoÅa Filologiczna we WrocÅawiu
s - Wyższa SzkoÅa Filologiczna we WrocÅawiu
s - Wyższa SzkoÅa Filologiczna we WrocÅawiu
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158<br />
Richard L. Lanigan<br />
3.1. The code<br />
The construction of an appropriate code of the Navajo Signal Corps Marines<br />
had to meet the requirements listed in Table 3. The initial effort at constructing<br />
an alphabet is shown in Table 4.<br />
Table 4. The first code-talker alphabet<br />
Letter Navajo word Meaning Letter Navajo word Meaning<br />
A Wol-la-chee Ant N Nesh-chee Nut<br />
B Shush Bear O Ne-ahs-jah Owl<br />
C Moasi Cat P Bi-sodih Pig<br />
D Be Deer Q Ca-yeilth Quiver<br />
E Dzeh Elk R Gah Rabbit<br />
F Ma-e Fox S Dibeh Sheep<br />
G Klizzie Goat T Than-zie Turkey<br />
H Lin Horse U No-da-ih Ute<br />
I Tkin Ice V A-keh-di-glini Victor<br />
J Tkele-cho-gi Jackass W Gloe-ih Weasel<br />
K Klizzie-yazzie Kidd X Al-an-as-dzoh Cross<br />
L Diheb-yazzie Lamb Y Tsah-as-zih Yucca<br />
M Na-as-tsosi Mouse Z Besh-do-gliz Zinc<br />
The assumption was that an alphabet would be necessary to spell out words<br />
in a message. The assumption was due to the signal corps secondary assumption<br />
that Morse code would be used to transmit some messages. As frequently happens<br />
in institutions like armies, this view represented the “old think” about “old<br />
technology” left over from WWI. World War II would be relying on radio telephone<br />
communication and combat message would rely more on a lexicon, than<br />
on an alphabet. Note that in the table, the meanings are names taken from Nature,<br />
mostly animals and plants, to accommodate code construction rules 2, 3,<br />
and 4.<br />
There are ways in which this alphabet is culturally metacoded. For example,<br />
there is a distinction being made with the Navajo insect name of “ant” which only<br />
a Navajo native speaker would recognize. This is to say the code contains a metacode<br />
wherein “A” is not “A”.<br />
The official translation for the letter A is wóláchíí = “red ant”, but there is<br />
also wólázihní = “black ant”. Red ant has to be used because the color lexicon<br />
of the Marine Combat Code does not use the color black (see Lexicon below). It<br />
is doubtful that the Marine Corps was aware of this lexicon choice or why it<br />
was made.<br />
While the code was sufficient according to the rules for using Navajo, the<br />
cryptologists immediately noted a problem when the code was translating English,<br />
namely, the problem of letter frequency in English – the key to breaking<br />
a code! So the problem with English is that the letters most frequently occurring
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