Nisei Linguists: Japanese Americans in the Military Intelligence Service During World War II (Paperbound)

Publisher: Defense Dept., Army, Center of Military History

Description: At the start of World War II, the U.S. Army turned to Americans of Japanese ancestry, the Nisei, to provide vital intelligence against Japanese forces in the Pacific. During the war their work remained a closely guarded secret. Even after the war, their contributions were often overlooked Now, a new book, Nisei Linguists: Japanese Americans in the Military Intelligence Service during World War II, tells the story of these soldiers, how the Military Intelligence Service (MIS) recruited and trained them, and how they served in every battle and campaign in the war against Japan.

Nisei linguists served with Army and Marine units from regiment to corps and above from Guadalcanal to the Philippines, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. Their duties included translation, interrogation, radio monitoring, and psychological warfare. In China, Burma, and India they served with the Office of Strategic Services, Merrill's Marauders, and Commonwealth forces. Others served with the Army Air Forces or within the continental United States. Commanders came to rely on the timely and accurate intelligence they provided. Dozens were decorated for valor, while several were killed or wounded in action.

At war's end the Nisei help arrange local surrenders of Japanese forces, and then fanned out across Japan to begin the occupation. Working in military government, war crimes trials, censorship, and counterintelligence, the MIS Nisei contributed to the occupation's ultimate success. They served as a bridge between America and Japan and helped cement the alliance that has lasted until today.

Year/Pages: 2006: 530 p.; ill.

Price: $30.50