memo
In October 2024, John Kinsel, a Navajo Native American communicator and one of the last code talkers known as Code Talkers, who contributed to the Allied victory in the Pacific War with codes based on the Navajo language, was announced in October 2024. I found out he passed away on the 19th.
John Kinsel Sr., Navajo Code Talker in World War II, Dies at 107 – The New York Times
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/20/us/navajo-code-talker-john-kinsel-dead.html
John Kinsel used his own language to fool the Japanese
https://www.economist.com/obituary/2024/12/05/john-kinsel-used-his-own-language-to-fool-the-japanese
“My condolences go out to the family of the late Navajo Code Talker John Kinsel, 107 years old,” Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren said in a Facebook post. I announced something.
Mr. Kinsel, who served in the military from October 1942 to January 1946, was one of the second group of code talkers trained as code talkers, following the first 29 people who developed codes using the Navajo language. He was one of the Marines.
The first group called themselves “Windtalkers,” and the fictional film “Windtalkers” based on their activities was released in 2002.
Japanese codebreakers during World War II are said to have had excellent deciphering abilities, but the Navajo language was complex and had no written characters, so it was almost impossible to decipher it. Taking advantage of this, Navajo code talkers used grenades as “potatoes,” amphibious vehicles as “frogs,” and dive bombers as “chicken hawk”, and in December, “hardened snow.” Translated military terms into Navajo were used to communicate information such as troop movements and enemy positions.
Mr. Kinsel also helped develop three ciphers. The first is “kame,” which means a tank, and the second is “bird carriers,” which refers to airplanes in general. The third “rabbit path”, which means route, was invented by Mr. Kinsel himself.
Japan was unable to crack the Navajo code until the very end, and the code talkers made a major contribution to the Allied victory in the Pacific War, but Mr. Kinsel did not brag about it or say much about it.
Mr. Kinsel values being a member of his community, tribe, or Marine Corps more than how he served, and when talking about his war experiences he uses “we” instead of “I.” It is said that he used
President Nygren said, “Mr. Kinsel was a Marine who bravely and selflessly fought for all of us under the most horrific of circumstances while assuming the greatest responsibility as a Navajo Code Talker. He and his comrades fought for the United States Marine Corps, for America, and to protect the Navajo Nation during wartime.”
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