By Santee Ross, University of Montana

Now more then ever do I wish I had an iPhone.

Not just because of the awesomely-geeky gadgets Apple makes but because there is a new application for the iPhone that teaches the Lakota language.

The "Lakota Toddler" app is available for free in the iTunes store and teaches Lakota vocabulary through words, picture and sounds. I like to think it's a kind of Rosetta Stone for Lakota, only the vocabulary is very basic.

OK, yes it’s intended to teach toddlers but let’s be honest here, there is a very small handful of Native people my age who can speak their Native language fluently. So, I’m excited that I could learn my Native language of Lakota in baby steps or rather toddler steps with the new app.

At home my mother knows the importance of keeping the language alive. She’s made flash cards for my siblings and I and put up signs around the house in Lakota, on objects like a door.

She tries to keep the language in regular conversation so that it’s not totally lost. We even type in Lakota when we’re texting.

“Hihanni Waste” is what we say for ‘good morning’ and I say “Mithankala” for little sister when I speak to my younger sisters. All those little phrases remind me that I am Native and proud of it.

This is how I think most Native homes are. There’s a lot of knowledge of the language through slang terms or small bits of phrases but nothing really beyond that.

Don’t get me wrong these are better than nothing and once you start somewhere it becomes easier to keep learning.

But I do think Native languages aren’t spoken often enough. I just don’t mean phrases here and there, I mean fluently spoken.

The thing I would love to see is fluent Native speakers of all ages.

If I had one wish I would wish for that, even though I’d love to see my fantasy of marrying Chaske Spencer come to life. Native languages spoken fluently like in the old days would be mind blowing. This new app might be the kick start to that.

With so many tech savvy natives out there I can almost guarantee there will be more apps like this one.

So maybe this means I can still wish for Chaske Spencer to ask for my hand in marriage, aye.

Santee Ross (Lakota/Hopi) is from Lander, Wyo.