2008 Medal Choctaw Nation Code Talkers Bronze 38mm

Coin Details

Description

This 38mm bronze medal honors the Choctaw Nation Code Talkers, who hold the distinction of being the first Native Americans to use their language for military communications during World War I. In October 1918, during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in France, Captain Lawrence of the 142nd Infantry Regiment of the 36th Division discovered that Choctaw soldiers in his unit could communicate in a language the Germans could not understand or intercept. The resulting improvised code talker program proved so effective that it helped turn the tide of the offensive and established the concept that would be expanded dramatically in World War II. The obverse features a design honoring the Choctaw Nation's pioneering role in code talker history, incorporating cultural imagery meaningful to the Choctaw people. The original Choctaw code talkers of World War I — including Solomon Louis, Mitchell Bobb, Ben Carterby, James Edwards, and others — demonstrated the potential of Native American languages as unbreakable codes under actual combat conditions. Their success directly inspired the broader code talker programs that would prove essential to Allied operations in the Pacific Theater of World War II. The reverse carries Code Talkers program inscriptions. The Choctaw Nation's claim to originating the code talker concept gives this medal particular historical significance within the series. The Choctaw language, a Muskogean language with complex tonal and grammatical features, proved impenetrable to German intelligence despite their sophisticated code-breaking capabilities.

Rarity Notes

Bronze duplicate medal, 38mm. Code Talkers Recognition Act of 2008. The Choctaw were the first code talkers in World War I (1918).

Cross References

PCGS #910565; Code Talkers 2008; Choctaw Nation; First code talkers WWI 1918; 36th Division, 142nd Infantry