Navajo, not Mandarin or Basque, is considered the most challenging language by many linguists. With only 170,000 fluent speakers in a tribe of 400,000, the language’s survival is threatened by globalization and discrimination. Navajo is tonal and has a complex phonology with unique sounds. Learning Navajo involves mastering extensive verb conjugations and understanding animacy, which dictates sentence structure. The language is dying due to historical, economic, and sociocultural factors, including assimilation pressure and the advantage of English proficiency. Efforts to preserve Navajo include bilingual education programs and changing attitudes toward Native American culture. Despite the decline in fluency, there is a growing interest in Navajo culture, providing hope for the language’s future.
https://bigthink.com/high-culture/navajo-language/