Revitalizing the Cherokee Language with Apple’s Support

Chuck Hoskin Jr. reminisces about a room full of Cherokee immersion students engrossed in watching How to Train Your Dragon. Except for Hiccup and Astrid, the main characters spoke Cherokee, voiced by members of the local community.

“They’re hearing it in our native language. This didn’t happen a generation ago,” shared Cherokee Chief Hoskin Jr. with WIRED. “Fortunately, we’ve evolved from traditional classroom methods to a world where creativity ignites imaginations, aiding all children in better understanding, reading, and writing.”

Currently, there are only around 1,500 active Cherokee speakers left, most of whom are over 70 years old. Hoskin Jr. expresses concern over the rapid loss of this generation, prompting efforts to support second language learners. The community even runs a baby immersion program in the hopes that a child’s first word will be in Cherokee.

Reflecting on historical adversities like colonization and boarding schools, Hoskin Jr. emphasizes the urgency of preserving the Cherokee language. Seeking partnerships to accelerate their efforts, Apple stands out as a notable collaborator. Recently, Apple announced expanded Native language support in iOS, with Cherokee being one of the added languages alongside others like Blackfoot and Comanche.

Recognizing the pervasive use of mobile devices among youth, Hoskin Jr. stresses the importance of making the language more accessible for revitalization. Apple acknowledges that this endeavor goes beyond simple translations, requiring extensive research and community input.

While Apple plays a crucial role, the process actually commences with Unicode—the organization responsible for standardizing characters like emojis on smartphones. According to Unicode CEO Toral Cowieson, the foundation for language preservation lies in establishing recognized characters within the Unicode standard, which currently encompasses over 157,000 characters.