White Guy Speaks Rare Native American Language, Shocks Locals

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[dudeudontknow]

If that lady has grand kids who say “I can’t learn Navajo” she’s gonna say “well I saw a white man speak the language so you have no excuse”

[kirikakirikakirika]

When I was travelling in Arizona I got lost in the middle of nowhere because my GPS broke down and I took a wrong turn. I was basically stuck in the desert for two hours trying to figure out where to go. There weren't any road signs, so I just ended up getting more and more lost. I ended up driving past a farm and pulling over to ask for directions. The family that lived there was Navajo. I told them my plight and they said they'd drive me back to town, but they were in the middle of dinner. They invited me to eat with them, but also offered to take me back to town immediately if I didn't want to wait. The father was literally going to let his food get cold and drive me to town to make me feel comfortable. Instead, I accepted the invitation. It was amazing and they were so kind. Their daughter was particularly taken with me, likely because she only had brothers and I'm a girl. She was thirteen and very vivacious. The food was delicious and they kept insisting I take more. By the time we were finished, it was pitch black outside. Again they offered to take me back, but also offered to let me spend the night since it would take over an hour to get back to town. I decided to stay. We had a bonfire out back, shared stories, and played a few games. One of the brothers, who was my age, gave me his room and slept on the couch. The daughter wanted me to sleep with her in her room, but the parents said no. They seemed convinced she wouldn't let me get any sleep, lol. The next morning they fed me breakfast, put some gas in my car, and I followed the dad back to town. The daughter and oldest son also carpooled with me to keep me company. They were genuinely the nicest people I've ever met and the experience was one I'll cherish forever.

[darringon]

As a fellow Navajo it’s not bad. Awesome job. I still to this day say that this 80 something year old woman that my family knew was probably the best and most fluent Caucasian woman that spoke Navajo that I have ever heard. So good that you couldn’t tell is she was Navajo or Caucasian. But she spent like 50 plus years on the reservation as a missionary so yes I consider her native.

[rachelb]

Coming from a later generation Oneida, our main language is Ojibwe. Only the elders and not even all of them know the native language. It's very rare. This guy deserves a lot of respect. the willingness to learn a whole new language shows a lot of respect for that culture

[peterk]

If they ever need someone to translate Navajo to Mandarin this guy's got that job.

[Rose-pecg]

The fact they invited you in, showed you around, and taught you how to cook is a huge sign of respect. Wonderful people. I hope their language continues to live on.

[missriverrat]

This made me cry. My ancestors are from Arizona, my grandfather remembers his parents and grandparents speaking Navajo. He speaks to me in Navajo sometimes. He would tell me how people would try to steal our land. Even the Germans married into our family to take it from us. Eventually it was lost. His father, aunts, and uncles were sent to Chilocco Indian school in Oklahoma. After that they lost touch with our tribe. I’m working on our genealogy right now with help from the Oklahoma Historical Society and I hope I can tell my grandfather which tribe he belonged to before he goes to rest with our creator. It saddens me how we’ve lost touch with our culture. This isn’t abnormal though. Indian children were sent away to assimilate into the American culture and my family is a testament of how well that worked. You can’t fathom how much suffering Native American people have endured. Women in the 70s experienced forced sterilizations many of which were Navajo - this was the women’s health America gave us. Our cultures are dying because America wants it to. This gives me hope! I can learn about my culture and preserve it. On a side note, I now live on a reservation and serve my community as a nurse. My grandfather is very happy I’m back in Arizona. I hope after I find our tribe I can take him on a trip to see his home again ❤️

[navandozer]

I wish I could see that lady talking so much shit to her son in law about how some random guy she met studied Navajo for a month and speaks it so well without even having Navajo family.

[rubenmedina]

This guy needs to be our American ambassador to ALL nations.
Including extraterrestrials.
Alien: "You know Martian?"
Xiaoman: "A little. I've been studying for an hour. Please show me around your spacecraft."

[Streetcan-oiiz]

Being 100% Navajo makes me so proud and I still speak Navajo and this language is very hard and my grandpa teach me how to speak it fluently and he was a Navajo code talker

[B_]

I love communities that are this friendly. They invited you back to teach you how to make Navajo breakfast, they respect you for taking an interest in their language and it’s so heartwarming watching them teach you how to cook Navajo breakfast! I wish more communities were like this.

[RJelly-fihd]

I am from New Mexico! I love that you came here to learn the Dine language. I am so impressed! It is also awesome that they allowed you into the kitchen and building. The Dine people are usually very "secretive" to outsiders. You gained their trust right away, just by learning their language. I am a little jealous. I married a Dine man. His grandmother did not speak to me until the day of my marriage to him. On that day, she said, " You are now my daughter." I felt soooo special after that, for she indeed spoke to me on a regular basis after that. I thought she did not speak to me, because she did not know English. She did!...RIP Grandmother Josephine Apache. I love you and miss you!

[wjf]

When you show genuine respect in honoring a language, you get respect back.

[nitsvjgxldtooth]

Being a Native American watched him speaking another language in other countries and watching him get speak our language is unexpected, I enjoyed watching this

[sethmartinez]

I have an aunt who speaks Navajo fluently. It’s such a beautiful language.

[marklowe]

I'm an Aussie and met a Navajo couple who were stranded in winter. In a couple of months in the USA meeting them and spending just a few hours with them was a major highlight. Extremely nice and humble people.

[guyinapandasuit]

Honestly, the way it went from "we're closed" to "come and learn how to make it" kinda had me in tears. So wholesome. Loved every minute.

[yaungemperor]

I'm Navajo and seeing this man speak this language is just amazing.

[coachmcguirk]

It's so cool how language has the ability to connect people. They went from being closed to the public to giving him a private tour and teaching him how to cook in their kitchen and then having a great time with the whole staff. It goes to show it really does matter how you say something. Had he made the burrito order in English he would've just been another customer.

[alli]

i love that you show your mistakes in these videos like mishearing or mispronouncing words, stuttering, etc. i get so caught up in sounding perfect when i speak german or spanish that it makes it hard to speak at all sometimes. it shows that mistakes arent the end of the world. another thing, would you consider putting subtitles for the entire video? maybe using diff colors for each language, idk. love the content <3