Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian

10/03/2023

This wool poncho in warm colors is just the thing for a chilly autumn day. 🍂 🧣

The Mapuche people have long been highly skilled weavers who create ponchos, belts, women’s dresses, shawls, headbands, and blankets of extraordinary quality. Researchers have found evidence of Mapuche fabrics dated to between AD 1300–1350. Traditional knowledge of textile patterns and weaving is transmitted through the maternal line, and highly skilled women are honored by the community. Once the Spanish arrived in what is now known as Chile in 1541, the indigenous Mapuche community entered into trade relationships that led to their cultivation of wheat and sheep.

This magnificent, well-preserved wool poncho from circa 1920 is woven with several different red and maroon colors and, importantly, with a stepped-diamond motif associated with authority and power in Mapuche society. In public ceremonies, such as the agricultural Nguillatun ceremony, only the Lonko and Tonki—older men and leaders, usually the heads of large patrilineages, wear these special ponchos.

Today, the Mapuche comprise about 9% of Chile's population, and 80% of the country's Indigenous population. Mapuche people also reside in neighboring Argentina. Knowledge of textile patterns and weaving techniques continue to be passed down from mothers to daughters in the community.

You can get a closer look at this object in our exhibition “Infinity of Nations” at our New York City museum or online (https://americanindian.si.edu/exhibitions/infinityofnations/).

During Hispanic Heritage Month, we highlight the Indigenous history, peoples, and communities of the Spanish-speaking Americas. "¡Presente! A Latino History of the United States" is the first exhibition from our fellow Smithsonian National Museum of the American Latino, currently on view at National Museum of American History.
__
Mapuche poncho, ca. 1920. Cholchol, Cautín Province, Chile. Wool, dye. 156 x 147 cm. Collected during the Thea Heye Chile Expedition led by Samuel K. Lothrop. 17/5656

10/02/2023

: We're in search of an Associate Director for Digital Strategy and Engagement. Click through to learn more and apply by Tuesday, October, 31, at 11:59pm (EST). https://s.si.edu/464FpjS

Job Opening: Associate Director for Digital Strategy and Engagement (SZ-2210 00) at Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC.

09/30/2023

"I, myself, am mournful of a vibrant, deep cultural heritage I may have inherited and had the opportunity to connect with without the forced assimilation and subsequent loss of traditional knowledge," writes Maddie Henderson (Ojibwe/Chippewa). During her summer internship at the museum, she sought to learn about the Indian boarding school era and how it has affected the dissemination of cultural practices generations later, including within her own family.

Today, September 30, is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, a day for raising awareness of the intergenerational impacts of Indian boarding and residential schools in the United States and Canada. Read more on our Smithsonian Voices blog: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/national-museum-american-indian/2023/09/30/healing-soul-wounds-grappling-with-the-indian-boarding-school-era/

During history major Maddie Henderson's internship at the National Museum of the American Indian, she sought to learn more about the Indian boarding school era and how forced assimilation has affected the dissemination of cultural practices generations later, including within her own family.

09/29/2023

In the event of a government shutdown on Oct. 1, Smithsonian museums, research centers and the National Zoo will remain OPEN through at least Oct. 7. The Smithsonian can use prior-year funds still available to us to remain open. Visit si.edu for updates.

Official website of the Smithsonian, the world's largest museum and research complex, with 19 museums, 9 research centers, and affiliates around the world.

09/28/2023

Surrounded by mountains and volcanoes and home to the Mexica culture, the Valley of Mexico is where these two sculptures of maize goddess Chicomecóatl originated. Chicomecóatl, or seven serpents, the female spirit of corn and sustenance was the female counterpart of the maize god, Cintéotl. Among the farmers of Central Mexico, she was the most revered deity, both loved and hated based on the results of the season's harvest. Countless images of Chicomecóatl were produced, from humble and crudely carved sculptures for family worship in rural communities, to exquisite sculptures placed in temples.

The first sculpture is made of a rapidly cooled and solidified lava rock known as scoria and wears a headdress known as an "amacalli" ("paper house"). A version made of paper was worn by priests during ritual ceremonies. The design appears like the doors of a house revealing the body of Chicomecóatl inside, which is why it's larger than the figure itself. There are also two spiral disks which symbolize sunlight for growing crops.

The maize goddess is often depicted, as seen in the second image, holding two ears of corn in each hand. She wears a feathered headdress, and her face, tunic, sash, hands and legs are painted red. For the Mexica, red symbolizes blood and the sun, signs of life and vitality. This sculpture is made of basalt, a slower cooled lava rock that makes up more than 90% of all volcanic rock on Earth.

During Hispanic Heritage Month, we highlight the Indigenous history, peoples, and communities of the Spanish-speaking Americas. "¡Presente! A Latino History of the United States" is the first exhibition from our fellow Smithsonian, the National Museum of the American Latino, currently on view at the National Museum of American History. Included in "¡Presente!" is a section on "Colonial Legacies" which examines how Indigenous and African peoples resisted and reacted to Spanish and other European colonization. The first sculpture is currently on loan and can be seen in "¡Presente!" The second sculpture is on view at our New York City museum in our ongoing exhibition "Infinity of Nations" (https://americanindian.si.edu/exhibitions/infinityofnations/).

[1] Sculpture of Chicomecóatl (the Corn Goddess), AD 1150–1521, Valley of Mexico; Mexico. Scoria, 41.5 x 29 x 12 cm. Collection history unknown; purchased by MAI from Harvey L. Hill (Harvey Alonzo Hill, 1861-1956, an antique dealer in San Francisco, California) in 1930. 17/7363.
[2] Mexica Chicomecoatl (seven snakes), the maize goddess, AD 1325–1521, probably Tenochtitlan, Mexico. Basalt, 70 x 30 x 15 cm. Fred Braun Collection, 8143.

09/25/2023

If you missed "Sounds of Guatemalan Marimba" at our DC museum recently, you can watch the recording (and dance like no one's watching) at home! 🤩 💃 https://youtu.be/25N7Q7z4Jh8

Celebrate the sound of Guatemala’s national instrument with these performances by Marimba Linda Xelajú (6:18), Marimba Mi Pequeña Internacional (33:00), and ...

09/22/2023

nineteen years ago, we opened our doors on the National Mall. But, parts of our present landscape were nearly four billion years in the making. If you’ve visited us in Washington, DC you may have noticed large boulders marking the four Cardinal directions outside the building. Each of these Grandfather Rocks came from an Indigenous community at the outer reaches of the Western Hemisphere.

Known for its protective properties, a Paleozoic (~541-251 million years ago) quartz from Sugarloaf Mountain faces east near the museum entrance—like entrances to many Native homes—to honor the rising sun. Surrounded by a wetland environment filled with native plants that reflects the local landscape prior to colonization, this rock represents the Native nations of Maryland and Virginia, closest to our museum.

The Grandfather rock to the South came from the Yagánes, the world's southernmost community, indigenous to the Tierra del Fuego archipelago off the tip of South America. It’s surrounded by staple crops native to the Americas like the Three Sisters (corn, beans, and squash), to***co (considered a sacred plant), pumpkin, potatoes, and sunflowers.

The youngest of our four Grandfathers sits in the West, and was born from Hawai‘i’s most active volcano, Kilauea. Chosen by a Hawaiian kūpuna (elder), this rock is on extended loan from Hawai‘i and a new one will take its place at the end of the loan. Native Hawaiian visitors often leave leis atop this boulder. The leis may be an offering to an akua (god), the stone itself, a blessing or sign of respect for this place, or even a way for the stone to feel close to home again.

Our Grandfather to the North hails from the world's oldest rock formation, the Acasta Gneiss, and came from the Tłı̨chǫ (Dogrib) tribe in northwest Canada. It's seated amidst hickory, walnut, and tulip poplar trees, which have long provided materials for weaving and dyeing. This rock is nearly 4 billion years old and weighs four tons.

Swipe to see a variety of images of the rocks being prepared to move to DC, being blessed, and situated on our grounds. Stay tuned for more between now and our next birthday in 2024, when we celebrate 20 years!

09/20/2023

Cattails (genus Typha) are a wetland icon found across North America. Specially developed air channels in the leaves, stems and roots of the plant allow for exchange of gases between the shoot and the root, similar to the function of a snorkel. This adaptation is called aerenchyma and is crucial to these water-loving plants’ ability to thrive in low-oxygen, water-saturated environments.

From medicine to food, Indigenous communities throughout the continent have found many uses for the various parts of the cattail plant. The broadleaved or common cattail (Typha latifolia) is the only type native to Washington State, and it is likely the kind that was woven and braided to create these dolls. Decorated with glass and wooden beads, sequins, and feathers, these dolls were purchased from artist/maker Agnes James (Snohomish, 1889-1971) in 1965. Swipe to see a T. latifolia specimen collected in Marysville, WA, located on the edge of the Tulalip Reservation, in July 1927.

Once in a museum collection, belongings made of cattails are cared for carefully, including limiting exposure to light to avoid advancing degradation. A close eye is also kept on humidity to ensure that it is not too low to cause embrittlement or too high to risk mold growth. Any special considerations, such as specific cultural protocols provided by a Native nation, are also followed to best care for the item.
__
[1] Agnes James (Snohomish [Tulalip Reservation], 1889-1971). Dolls, female and male, 1965. Marysville, Tulalip Reservation; Snohomish County; Washington; USA. Cattail, feather/feathers, pigment/pigments, glass bead/beads, wooden beads, sequins, thread, raffia. Purchased by Indian Arts and Crafts Board representatives from the Seattle Indian Center (Seattle, Washington) in 1965; part of the IACB Headquarters collection (Department of the Interior, Washington, DC) until 2000 when it was transferred to NMAI. 25/3509 (22.4 x 8.5 x 6.7 cm) and 25/5308 (22.05 x 9.05 x 10 cm).

[2] Typha latifolia, USNH 2162368 in the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History collection

09/19/2023

As summer nears its end in the Northern Hemisphere, we're looking forward to cooler weather and an autumn filled with activity at both of our museum locations. If you want to stay in the know about what's going on at the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC and New York City, sign up for our email updates (https://s.si.edu/46exjVI).

Many of the quilts in our care come from the Florence Pulford collection which was acquired in 2007. Pulford was a San Francisco Bay area homemaker and first became interested in quilts made by the Plains tribes in the 1960s. Plains quilts often bear a central octagonal star and functioned as ritual and practical replacements for Plains-style buffalo robes. The quilts took on this function due to how bison were hunted nearly to extinction in the 1800s as a way to subdue Plains tribes. Many of the patterns and motifs on the quilts were similar to the ones painted on buffalo hides. Quilter Ella First Kill Brown (A’aninin) put a spin on the classic central star motif by multiplying it, creating a field of a dozen summer stars.
__
Ella First Kill Brown (A’aninin [Gros Ventre], 1890–1982). “End of Summer Stars” quilt, 1968–1982. Fort Belknap Reservation; Blaine County, Phillips County; Montana; USA. 220.5 x 177.8 cm. 12 star flower blocks, quilted in outline pattern. 26/6333

09/15/2023

"Scissor dancers throughout Peru’s south-central highlands wear brightly colored outfits. Their baggy trousers and fitted jackets are richly decorated with metallic embroidery, gold and silver fringe, and colored sequins and beads. Their large hats are often edged with tassels and feathers, and sometimes with ribbons. All scissor dancers have special names, which are often embroidered on their outfits. "Lastapara," embroidered on the hat and apron of this outfit, means “snowfall” in Quechua. Wearing a glove on their left hand, scissor dancers wield in their right hand polished iron rods, which represent scissors. As they perform demanding acrobatic leaps, the dancers strike the rods against each other, following the rhythm set by the accompanying violins and harps."

"The high Andean mountains of south-central Peru are the traditional setting for the "Quechua Danza de Tijeras," or Scissor Dance, an artistic and semi-religious performance that, on one level, expresses the human need to challenge and overcome physical limitations. Its origins uncertain, the dance evolved in the present-day departments of Huancavelica, Ayacucho, Apurimac, and Arequipa.[…] During the 1500s and 1600s, Catholic priests banned ancient agricultural rituals and persecuted scissor dancers because they refused to abandon their ancient ideas.[…] But since the Spanish could not entirely eradicate indigenous Andean beliefs, they integrated the scissor dance into colonial society under the condition that the dancers participate in the Catholic ritual calendar[…]. In this way, Christian rites in Andean communities were fused with traditional indigenous practices."—Fernando Flores-Zúñiga, with Cécile R. Ganteaume from the "Circle of Dance" exhibition (Oct. 6, 2012–Oct. 8, 2017) Read the full essay and learn more: https://americanindian.si.edu/exhibitions/circleofdance/quechua.html.

Join us tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 16 at 1 or 3 PM ET at our New York City museum to mark . The whole family can experience the acrobatic stylings of Peruvian Scissor Dancers as they accompany Andean & Latin Fusion band RAYMI. Details: https://s.si.edu/3sSlW7q

Learn about Latino history all year, beyond . Follow our fellow Smithsonian, the National Museum of the American Latino.

09/13/2023

What does education sovereignty for Indigenous peoples look like in a modern context and how can teachers become allies in their classrooms by imparting lessons, inspiration, and empowerment? Learn more with fellow educators when you join us and Teaching for Change for our 2023 Indigenous Peoples’ Day Curriculum Teach-In in Washington, DC on Saturday, Sept. 30: https://s.si.edu/3PjfwFJ

Can't join us in DC, or looking for virtual professional development opportunities? Visit our education initiative Native Knowledge 360: https://s.si.edu/3NnjPir

Native Knowledge 360° provides live and interactive programs to introduce educators to our extensive resources and learn how to incorporate more complete narratives about Native Americans.

09/11/2023

"Many people remember hearing [Isaac Ho‘opi‘i's] voice in the darkness and following his voice to safety," says Cedric Yeh, curator of the National Museum of American History’s National September 11 Collection.

Ho‘opi‘i (Native Hawaiian) was a K-9 police officer at the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. Keep reading: https://s.si.edu/3sTo6nq

From a Pentagon rescuer's uniform to a Flight 93 crew log, these objects commemorate the 20th anniversary of a national tragedy

09/09/2023

Sounds of Guatemalan Marimba is starting now (2 PM ET)! Enjoy performances by Marimba Maya Awal, Marimba Mi Pequeña Internacional, and Marimba Linda Xelajú as they play Guatemala’s national instrument. Watch at AmericanIndian.si.edu/livestream

This program is part of the museum’s Hispanic Heritage Month events.

09/08/2023

We’re back with a final installment of the looks that walked the runway to close out the 101st SWAIA - Santa Fe Indian Market on Sunday, August 20. This reel features collections by Jamie Okuma, Jason Baerg with Melanie Monique Rose, Jontay Kahm, Dusty LeGrande of Mobiliize, Lauren Good Day, Himikalas Pamela Baker, and Orlando Dugi.

Congratulations to all of the designers who demonstrated the power of fashion to inspire, empower, and awe a sold out crowd!

09/05/2023

Nearly six feet tall, this headdress is made of palm and reeds, and decorated with feathers of birds found in the Amazon rainforest. The name of the headdress, “ijasó,” comes from a fish found in Brazil’s Araguaia River. Ijasó headdresses, often made in pairs and worn with accompanying rattles, represent spirits called by shamans to visit the Karajá people. In ceremonies marking the summer and dry season, the ijasó spirits join the community in dancing and singing festivals. According to Karajá oral tradition, the Karajás’ first ancestors came from the river and those very ijasó fish.

Because they make their homes along the Araguaia River valley in the lowlands of the eastern Amazon, fish are an essential element of Karajá culture. Due to deforestation and the expansion of industrial agriculture into the Karajá people’s traditional lands, the Araguaia River suffers from erosion. Erosion is one of many factors limiting the supply of fish, which can cause communities to migrate elsewhere in search of food security and economic opportunity.

Today is Amazon Day, a celebration of the region, home to more than 33 million people, including Indigenous communities such as the Karajá and multitudes of plant and animal species—some still unknown to science. The Amazon helps regulate global carbon dioxide levels, essential for life on Earth.

Indigenous communities around the world are often the first to experience the negative consequences of climate change and environmental harm—and the first to raise the alarm and lead sustainability efforts. For many, these changes lead to losses of traditional ways of knowing, native languages, cultural and spiritual practices, and much more.

This mask and the rattles that go with it are on view in the exhibition “Infinity of Nations” at the National Museum of the American Indian in New York City, as well as online (https://americanindian.si.edu/exhibitions/infinityofnations/).
__
Karajá ijasò mask, ca. 1930–1960. Bananal Island, Tocantins State, Brazil. Babassu palm, reed, macaw feathers, Amazon parrot feathers, roseate spoonbill feathers, harpy eagle feathers, beeswax, cotton cordage. 170 x 53 x 22 cm. Purchased from Frank C. Napier. 23/2000

Smithsonian

09/03/2023

How are Indigenous youth asserting their sovereignty and dismantling stereotypes through hip-hop? Watch and listen as Mato Wayuhi (Oglala Lakota), Talon Bazille Ducheneaux (Cheyenne River Lakota/Crow Creek Dakota), and Kyle T. Mays (Black/Saginaw Chippewa) discuss their different perspectives. https://youtu.be/QcHaND7XOnU

How are Indigenous youth asserting their sovereignty and dismantling stereotypes through hip-hop? Join us for a conversation with Native youth who meld hip-h...

09/02/2023

We've got some long weekend long reads for you in the latest issue of our American Indian Magazine, now online. Read about the candid art of Six Nations Kanyen’kehá:ka (Mohawk) artist, photographer and filmmaker Shelley Niro—on view at our NYC location, how powwows strengthen community bonds, rebuilding the Taíno language, and more. https://www.americanindianmagazine.org/issues/summer-2023

Mohawk multimedia artist Shelley Niro painted her granddaughter Raven wearing the same kind of hat as Sky Woman, who in her people’s creation story makes the Earth. She was inspired to create an artwork that “includes today’s youth and gives hope for the future.”

08/31/2023

For all you moon watchers out there, you can thank Raven for last night's super (blue) views. 🌝

Hailing from the Pacific Northwest, Ed Archie NoiseCat (Shuswap/Stl'atl'imx [Lillooet]) interprets the story of how Raven steals the moon and brings light to the night sky. NoiseCat includes the different phases of the moon around the rim of this carved glass sculpture, starting with a new moon at the top, and a full moon at the bottom.

In the tale "How Raven Stole the Sun," Raven steals the sun and places it in the sky, bringing light to the world. If you visited our Washington, DC museum in 2022, you might have learned a Tlingit version of Raven's story in "Preston Singletary: Raven and the Box of Daylight".
__
Ed Archie NoiseCat (Shuswap/Stl'atl'imx [Lillooet], b. 1959). “Raven Steals the Moon,” 2003. Carved cast glass sculpture. 10 x 53 cm. Santa Fe, New Mexico. Museum commission from the artist. 26/3228

08/30/2023

"Niro’s art, which speaks in the present tense and affirms the continuity of the Mohawk people, is haunted by the displacement of her ancestors," writes Philip Kennicott on "Shelly Niro: 500 Year Itch" on view through Jan. 1, 2024 at our NYC museum.

Artist Shelley Niro’s people once lived along the Mohawk River. Mine too.

08/29/2023

: Our Mitsitam Native Foods Cafe at our Washington, DC museum has been open for almost 20 years. After two decades, the cafe is due for some TLC and much needed construction—beginning next Tuesday, September 5. The Espresso Bar will stay open and continue to serve hot and cold beverages, desserts and pastries, plus a variety of Native-inspired food options such as posole, chili, clam chowder, Hatch Green Chile corn muffins, wild rice salad and sandwiches. Mitsitam will reopen in late Spring 2024.
https://www.si.edu/newsdesk/releases/national-museum-american-indians-mitsitam-cafe-close-renovations

Curious about Indigenous foodways, history, or looking for recipes? Check out our online resources: https://americanindian.si.edu/online-resources/food

The Mitsitam Cafe at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian will close for renovations Tuesday, Sept. 5. The cafe, which is in the museum’s Washington, D.C., location, will remain closed through late spring 2024. Mitsitam means “Let’s eat!” in the Native language of the D...

08/24/2023

: Before you get back into the classroom, mark your calendars for some of our upcoming professional development opportunities: https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360/professional-development/upcoming-webinars. Visit our education initiative Native Knowledge 360° for extensive resources and classroom activities that are available 24/7.

Native Knowledge 360° provides live and interactive programs to introduce educators to our extensive resources and learn how to incorporate more complete narratives about Native Americans.

08/22/2023

The Jingle Dress Project [brings] “the spirit of the land to people who need it,” says Diné artist Eugene Tapahe. “We are grateful to give them hope.” More in our American Indian magazine.

Diné photographer Eugene Tapahe and the dancers of the Art Heals: Jingle Dress Project have journeyed to national and state parks across the United States to honor their ancestors, bless the land and offer prayers for those in need.

08/20/2023

Engulfed in sound and taken over by the spirit of the loudest bird in the world is how designer Jontay Kahm (Plains Cree, b. 1996) would want the wearer of this dress to feel. One year ago, at the 100th Santa Fe Indian Market, we met Kahm, a First Nations fashion designer at a pop-up at the IAIA Museum of Contemporary Native Arts. Kahm draws inspiration from his cultural heritage, nature, love of performance and theater, fashion giants, and his fellow contemporary Indigenous fashion designers. During the Market, the museum acquired one of Kahm’s pieces which challenge traditional notions of dressmaking, resulting in ethereal garments that are radically future-facing and exquisitely feminine.

Kahm’s inspirations are readily evident in “Bell Bird”, a dress made of eight hundred grey goose feathers, heat-bonded felt, with a baby blue satin lining. About the design concept, Kahm says he was inspired by the loudest bird in the world, the white bell bird, which has a call that can reach 125 decibels. Instead of a literal interpretation of the bird in dress form, Kahm used a variety of grey goose feathers for the silhouette, with spoon-shaped feathers accenting the perimeter, making the piece seem almost as if it were floating in mid-air.

“A year ago, the power and impact of Jontay Kahm’s talent was immediately clear to me and our curators. We were proud to add “Bell Bird” to our collection. Today, it’s exciting to see the impact an artist can make within a year as they gain appreciation and recognition for their creativity and talent. Congratulations to all the designers participating in the SWAIA - Santa Fe Indian Market fashion show today,” says director Cynthia Chavez Lamar.

To complete his senior year at the Institute of American Indian Arts, Kahm’s collection “Regalian Bodies: Grief and Remembrance” walks the runway today, on the last day of the 101st Santa Fe Indian Market. Kahm will next head to New York City to pursue a Master of Fine Arts degree at the Parsons School of Design to continue growing as an artist and designer.
__
Jontay Kahm (Plains Cree, b. 1996), “Bell Bird”, 2022. Goose feathers, felt, and satin. Santa Fe, New Mexico. Collection of the National Museum of the American Indian. 27/0716. Photos courtesy of the artist.

08/19/2023

Shelley Niro’s “Waitress” represents Indigenous lives lost, forgotten, and continually traumatized by the effects of North America's colonial systems. Niro remembers thinking about the past and present when she made this work: "Here we are living in the present, but these spirits are still hovering around. I wanted to acknowledge the past that's always there."

Niro wittily pictures herself as a fumbling server who has "accidentally" spilled wine on a white customer. Behind them, Brian Mulroney (then prime minister of Canada) and his wife, Mila, are portrayed as oblivious to the suffering of Indigenous peoples, who are represented by the mask-like faces in the background.

Shelley Niro uses the tools of theater and storytelling to critique history and modern life with humor and playfulness-like a sugar coating for a bitter pill. Narrative texts and provocative titles accompany her suites of photographs. Some paintings, like “Waitress”, show a moment in what is clearly a larger story. Throughout her work, Niro defines "actor" equally as the personas she creates in her artworks and those who act with agency to pursue justice and positive change.

See this painting on view in the exhibition “Shelley Niro: 500 Year Itch” (through Jan. 1, 2024) at our New York City museum, celebrating more than a half century of Shelley Niro’s paintings, photographs, mixed-media works, and films. Plan your visit: https://s.si.edu/3pJOfDw
__
Shelley Niro (Six Nation Reserve, Bay of Quinte Mohawk, Turtle Clan, b. 1957), “Waitress,” (1987), Oil on canvas. Art Gallery of Hamilton. Purchase, Permanent Collection Fund, 2021.

08/15/2023

: Just two weeks left to apply to be considered for the museum's Native Art Market! Be one of the 35 artists sharing your work during the first weekend of December at our New York City and Washington, DC locations. Apply by Friday, September 1: https://americanindian.si.edu/artmarket/calltoartists/

08/14/2023

Today is , and the legacy of Navajo Code Talkers reminds us of the power of being able to speak one's native language. During World Wars I and II, hundreds of Native American servicemen from more than twenty tribes used their Indigenous languages to send secret, coded messages enemies could never break. Known as code talkers, these men helped U.S. forces achieve military victory in some of the greatest battles of the twentieth century.

Learn more with our exhibition "Why We Serve: Native Americans in the United States Armed Forces,” available online and at our Washington D.C. and New York City museums. https://americanindian.si.edu/why-we-serve/topics/code-talkers/

Learn more about the National Native American Veterans Memorial on the grounds of our Washington, D.C. museum: https://americanindian.si.edu/visit/washington/nnavm.

During World Wars I and II, hundreds of Native American servicemen from more than twenty tribes used their Indigenous languages to send secret, coded messages enemies could never break. Known as code talkers, these men helped U.S. forces achieve military victory in some of the greatest battles of th...