Venu Menon
Wellington, October 18,2023
The Language Week celebration by the Niue community in New Zealand is set to conclude on October 21, amid grave concerns that the language and culture may be lost forever.
Vagahau Niue, the Niue language, is listed by UNESCO as an endangered language.
“We face the challenge of trying to preserve Vagahau Niue and Niue culture. Losing the language and culture is a real worry for many Niue people and our leaders and community groups are working hard to explore, discuss and formulate strategies to ensure these treasures are protected and sustained for future generations,” says Gerardine Clifford-Lidstone, Secretary for Pacific Peoples.
This year’s theme is a carry- over from last year and translates in English to: “Sustain Niue Language and Culture for Future Generations.”
The 2018 Census puts the Niue population residing in New Zealand at 30,867. Of those, barely 12% speak Vagahau Niue.
This represents a drop of 11% since the 2006 Census.
Niue language and culture are being promoted through workshops and events that kicked off on October 15, featuring poetry, song, story writing, art and craft, sports and food, as well as speech contests for young people.
Opening and closing events to mark Niue Language Week are being held across New Zealand.
Niue is a self-governing nation falling within the Realm of New Zealand, whose people are New Zealand citizens.
Over 95% of the Niue population live in New Zealand.
Among all the Pacific languages, Vagahau Niue faces the highest threat of extinction, with just 7% of those under 15 speaking the language.
Though Vagahau Niue is an accredited subject under NCEA, it is difficult to learn the language formally or in community settings in New Zealand.
The Vagahau Niue Community Action Plan, which forms part of the Pacific Languages Strategy and aligns with the United Nations’ programme to protect the world’s indigenous languages, lays out three key objectives.
The first involves according value to Vagahau Niue across New Zealand by acknowledging the trauma suffered by the language and its culture as a result of colonisation. Efforts are directed at developing programmes that “educate Tagata Niue on the benefits of learning, speaking, and passing on the language.” Legislation granting official status to Vagahau Niue and other Realm languages is also under consideration.
The second objective is to fund community language classes aimed at young people. Also on offer are exchange programmes for students to travel to Niue, coupled with mentoring programmes in communities and for teachers.
The third objective is to create an environment for the propagation of Vagahau Niue by appointing more translators and also raising the profile of Vagahau Niue in the print and digital media.
The number of children accessing services to learn Vagahau Niue has fallen lately after surging in 2013.
Venu Menon is an Indian Newslink reporter based in Wellington
