Choctaw Nation Launches Free Rosetta Stone Language App
Choctaw Nation Launches Free Rosetta Stone App to Help Preserve Choctaw Language
A major effort to preserve the Choctaw language for future generations is now available to learners in Oklahoma and around the world.
The Choctaw Nation Rosetta Stone language app, called Chahta Anumpuli! (Speak Choctaw!), is officially live following a multi-year collaboration between the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and Rosetta Stone. The free program uses the voices of Choctaw elders and community members to teach the language through lessons grounded in Choctaw culture.
The program is available to anyone age 15 and older who wants to learn Choctaw, including people who are not tribal members. Learners can access the course on computers, iPhones and Android devices.
Choctaw Nation Rosetta Stone Language App Uses Authentic Voices and Culture
The Choctaw Nation Rosetta Stone language app was designed to do more than translate English words into Choctaw.
Rosetta Stone worked with the Choctaw community to build an immersive digital course intended to capture the language's sound, rhythm and cultural meaning. Lessons incorporate authentic voices, imagery and traditions supplied by Choctaw community members.
Instead of relying only on generic vocabulary exercises, learners encounter language connected to traditional food preparation, beadwork, basketmaking, dressmaking, hymn singing and traditional stories.
That cultural connection is a central part of the Nation's broader language preservation strategy. The Choctaw Nation says speaking the language helps preserve and protect Choctaw culture and sovereignty.
Learners can access the new program and apply for a license through the official Chahta Anumpuli! language app page.
Free Choctaw Language Program Designed to Reach New Generations
The program arrives as the Choctaw Nation works to increase the number of people who can speak Chahta anumpa, the Choctaw language.
Choctaw Nation Chief Gary Batton has said the number of fluent speakers declined sharply over recent decades and that the loss accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the Nation lost several first-language speakers.
The new digital program gives learners another way to study regardless of where they live.
The Choctaw Nation already offers language instruction through community programs, public schools, colleges, online courses and other educational programs. Its School of Choctaw Language currently serves approximately 3,000 people each week through its various programs.
The Nation also reports that more than 750 students are currently enrolled in Level 1 and Level 2 Choctaw language courses at 38 public schools, creating another pathway for younger Oklahomans to learn the language.
Additional dictionaries, phrasebooks, classes, stories and other learning resources are available through the Choctaw Nation Language Department.
Language Preservation Connected to Choctaw Identity and Sovereignty
For the Choctaw Nation, preserving the language is closely connected to preserving cultural identity.
Batton has described Chahta anumpa as essential to Choctaw history, heritage and tribal sovereignty, saying the Rosetta Stone partnership provides another tool for developing new speakers and carrying the language into future generations.
The Choctaw Nation is one of the largest tribal nations in the United States, with more than 230,000 tribal members, and its historic reservation boundaries cover nearly 11,000 square miles in southeastern Oklahoma.
The Rosetta Stone project is part of a broader preservation effort that includes language classes, apprenticeships, cultural programming and digital resources.
The app also allows learners to use Choctaw characters on supported devices. Apple devices provide native Choctaw keyboard support, while Android users can enable the language through Gboard. Once enabled, the keyboard can be used beyond Rosetta Stone for texts, emails, notes and social media.
The project received support through a grant from the Administration for Children and Families and Administration for Native Americans, helping make the program free to learners.
More information about the Nation's ongoing language preservation efforts is available through the Chahta Anumpa Aiikhvna, School of Choctaw Language.
For the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, the new app puts generations of voices and cultural knowledge into a format that can travel anywhere, giving new speakers another opportunity to learn the language and help carry Chahta anumpa forward.
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