| The Navajos have never stopped speaking their native Athabaskan language, unlike many other native peoples who are trying to revive their languages. The Navajo language is spoken only on the Navajo reservation in the southwestern United States, and until recently was an unwritten language. It is an extremely complex language with no alphabet or symbols. It is very reflective of the Navajo way of life and their world. To be able to speak Navajo, one must have extensive exposure and training. Navajo is a tonal language, meaning the vowels rise and fall when pronounced, changing meaning with pitch. There are four separate tones of voice used: low, high, rising, and falling. Two separate words with different meanings may therefore have the same pronunciation but with different tones. Some Navajo words are also nasalized, meaning that the sound comes through the nose instead of the mouth. The following is a simplified guide to the pronunciation of vowels. The short vowels are pronounced as follows: | a | as in father | | e | as in west | | i | as in sit | | o | as in low | The long or doubled vowels are pronounced the same, but the sounds are held longer: | aa | as in say "aah" | | ee | as in yeah | | ii | as in see | | | oo | as in oh | The combined vowels are pronounced as follows: | ai | as in my | | ao | as in cow | | ei | as in say | | oi | as in chewy | Accent marks after syllables mean to stress the syllable, while accent marks over vowels indicate they are to be spoken in a high tone. Here are some examples of words that are important to the Navajo people. | boy | ashkii | house | kin (also trading post) | | brother | ánaaí (older) | mother | amá | | brother | átsilí (younger) | mountain | dzil | | corn | naadáá�?/B> | no | dooda | | coyote | ma’ii | rabbit | gah | | deer | biih | rug | diyogi | | dog | lééchaa’�?/B> | school | ólta' | | earth | nahosdzáán; also ni' | sheep | dibé | | father | azhé'é | silver | béésh ligaii | | feather | ats'os | singer | hataali (medicine man) | | fire | ko' | sister | ádí (older) | | fish | lóó' | sister | adeezhi (younger) | | friend | alah (of the opposite sex) | sky | yá | | friend | ak'is (of the same sex) | smoke | lid | | frog | ch'al | sun | jóhonaa'eí | | girl | at'ééd | turquoise | dootl'i'izhii | | goat | tl'ízí | water | tó | | hello | yá'át'ééh | wool | aghaa' | | home | hooghan | yes | aoo' | | horse | líí' | | | | | The Navajo language is very difficult for non-Navajos to understand because of the precise way in which one object relates to another. These relationships may seem unimportant to outsiders, but are exceptionally important to the Navajos. Their view of life, which is that everything they do and that happens to them is related to the world around them, is very apparent in the way they speak. For example, a Navajo would not say, "I am hungry," but instead would say, "Hunger is hurting me." It has been said that in Navajo, words paint a picture in your mind. | |
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