Alonzo Moss, Sr. tells his audience that their native language is their identity, saying “The only thing that going to make me Arapaho is if I speak Arapaho.” NATIVE TIMES PHOTO BY DANA ATTOCKNIEANADARKO, Okla. – Alonzo Moss, Sr. knows his Northern Arapaho language and his Johnny Cash songs.
Moss, 72, was honored as the 2010 Indian of the Year for the 79th American Indian Exposition during a reception Aug. 7 at the First United Methodist Church of Anadarko.


During his reception, he shared a hearty dose of laughter and language lessons with a side of singing and playing guitar to Johnny Cash songs.
“He’s really comical. He really impresses people, the way he talks … he just kind of fits in with the crowd. He wasn’t standing high,” Lucy Wabaunasee, American Indian Exposition president said. “(And) He likes Johnny Cash.”
Moss was born June 30, 1938 on the Wind River Indian Reservation in Fort Washakie, Wyo. His parents are Paul and Wyoma Moss. On Feb. 8, 1958 he married Gladys Goggles and they later had two sons and five daughters.
He worked as a tree feller and on numerous labor jobs before earning his G.E.D. in 1970. He served as a teacher’s assistant for Wyoming Indian Schools and later began teaching Arapaho language at Wyoming Indian High School.  After teaching for 20 years at the high school, he began teaching Arapaho language at Central Wyoming College, Wind River Tribal College, the University of Colorado - Boulder and the University of Wyoming.
Moss told the crowd their native language is their identity, it’s who they are. He said a person’s identity is not defined by having a tribal car tag or anything of the like.
“The only thing that’s going to make me Arapaho is if I speak Arapaho,” Moss said.
Arapaho is his first language and Moss was raised in a household where Arapaho was the only language spoken when he was a child. He learned English at St. Stephens Indian Mission boarding school in St. Stephens, Wyo. when he was 6 years old.
Moss stressed the fact that many people do not know their native language and there is a great fear that many languages will be lost once the fluent speakers are gone. He also said he does not particularly care for the world “elder.”  He said elder is a Christian term and the older generation should not feel ashamed to be called old – old man or old woman.  He said people should be proud they reached a certain age.
“He’s really, a really nice person. He has accomplished a lot … I was really impressed. I think the board made a wise decision,” Wabaunasee said.
Wabaunasee said the selection of Indian of the Year is a board decision, and the board thought Moss was suitable because he works to keep the Arapaho language alive plus he shares his wisdom with other people working to keep their native languages alive.
“He’s really a pretty awesome guy. I think everyone felt comfortable, they really enjoyed it (reception),” Wabaunasee said. “He had some good things to say.”
Today, Moss serves on the Northern Arapaho Language Commission. The commission supervises the tribe’s Language and Culture preservation, and endorses qualified people who need certification to teach Arapaho language in schools.
Moss encourages Arapaho language teachers to use the Salzmann system, created by Zdenek Salzmann. The system is phonetically structured, and Moss has published articles and books written in the system.
In addition to teaching students, Moss also teaches family. During his reception, his family members stood up one by one when Moss called out their Indian names. He also took Arapaho language dictionaries to the reception and sang for the audience in Arapaho.
“It’s been a big honor to be here,” Moss said. “It means my work is finally paying off.”