Cherokee Nation launches Language Hub Website, New Testament audio feature in Dictionary app

TAHLEQUAH, Okla. - The Cherokee Nation has launched a new Cherokee Nation Language Hub website, a central place for Cherokee language resources and a New Testament audio feature in the Cherokee Nation Dictionary app.

"Deputy Chief Warner and I are beyond grateful for the Language Department's dedication to preserving Cherokee voices and texts for future generations," said Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. "The Cherokee Nation Language Hub brings all these efforts together, making them accessible to citizens learning the language worldwide. This is a golden age for Cherokee language learning."

Chief Hoskin announced the launch of the new Language Hub in his Sept. 5, 2026, State of the Nation Address.

Developed by the Cherokee Nation Language Department and Kiwa Digital Ltd., the language hub brings together lessons, audio recordings, books, classroom materials, technology tools and cultural stories into one searchable platform for all fluency levels.

Within the language hub is a project called Saving the Voices (ᏛᎵᏏᏅᏗᏍᎬ ᎠᏂᏁᎬᎢ), which is the tribe's largest effort to preserve recordings of fluent Cherokee speakers. By the end of 2027, the collection will include speaker interviews from 1,040 first-language, fluent speakers.

"We are saving voices that hold cultural knowledge and wisdom that could otherwise be lost to future generations," said Howard Paden, executive director of the Cherokee Nation Language Department. "ᏛᎵᏏᏅᏗᏍᎬ ᎠᏂᏁᎬᎢ, Saving the Voices, means those generations will not only have the words, but the ability to hear first-language speakers using Cherokee as it was actually spoken and learn directly from the people who carried our language forward."

The fluent speaker recordings allow community members to hear elders speaking conversational Cherokee as they share stories, history, cultural knowledge, and memories, preserved for generations to come.

The recordings capture how Cherokee is spoken, used, and expressed. Speakers tell jokes and stories, describing the world that they knew: medicinal plants, healing methods, hunting, fishing, food preparation, people, places, their personal faiths and more. This shows the Cherokee language in real context, rather than as isolated words or teaching examples.

The Saving the Voices initiative began in 2023. Each interview had been recorded, transcribed into Cherokee syllabary, translated into modern English, and brought to life in the new Cherokee Nation Language Hub website.

The ever-growing collection of language materials can be added to over time, allowing the language hub to manage and organize all resources used to learn the Cherokee language.

The Cherokee Nation Language Hub website is live now and can be found here.

The tribe also launched a New Testament audio feature in the Cherokee Nation Dictionary app.

The Cherokee Nation Dictionary app was launched in 2025 and was created in partnership with the Cherokee Nation Language Department and Kiwa Digital Ltd. The New Testament feature includes the entire New Testament in a written syllabary that will highlight each word and phrase in real time, as first-language speaker and pastor Russell Feeling, reads the text aloud.

Cherokee National Treasure Russell Feeling is the brother of the late Durbin Feeling, who created the first Cherokee to English dictionary in 1975.

The New Testament audio includes 39 hours of recordings, with links that let users skip to specific books and chapters, a bookmark feature, and a share feature that allows users to share favorite verses. Users can also tap bolded words to see meanings and phonetics.

"The New Testament is one of the most important texts translated into Cherokee. It's not only a religious text but a vital language resource," said Cherokee Nation Deputy Chief Bryan Warner. "I know this feature will be used in Cherokee-speaking homes, for generations to come, both for devotional and language-learning purposes. I'm grateful to those who played a part in its creation."

The complete Cherokee New Testament audio feature is available now in the Cherokee Nation Dictionary app, which can be downloaded from the App Store and Google Play.

Since 2019 Cherokee Nation has invested over $182 million in language revitalization efforts under the Hoskin/Warner Administration's Durbin Feeling Language Preservation Act.

To learn more about the Cherokee Nation's language resources, contact the Cherokee Nation Language Department at 918-207-4900 or visit https://language.cherokee.gov.