Te Vaiaho o te Gagana Tokelau | Tokelau language week!

Zoe Miller

Mālo ni!

It’s time for Te Vaiaho o te Gagana Tokelau | Tokelau language week 2023! Our theme this year is:

Ke Olatia ko ia Tokelau i tana Fakavae | Tokelau to Prosper Within its Foundation.

Tokelau Language and Culture

The nation is made up of the three atolls (ring-shaped coral islands) Nukunonu, Atafu, and Fakaofo, known as the Union Islands, until 1946 when Tokelau (north-wind) became the official name.

Tokelauans are New Zealand citizens. There are more than 8500 Tokelauan people in New Zealand today – five times the population of the islands themselves (about 1600)! We’re very lucky to have more Tokelauans in Wellington than anywhere else in the world, living and contributing a lot to our shared culture!

Events

Join us at Te Whare Pukapuka o Te Takapū o Patukawenga| Mervyn Kemp (Tawa) Library for a special Tokelauan Storytime and Fatele Dance on Tuesday, 24 October 2023, 3:30 – 4:30pm

Celebrate Tokelau language and culture with some special guests who will share some stories and some fatele dance. Bring your elders and children and join in the fun!

Listen to a beautiful Tokelau pehe – a song – from Tokelauan-Kiwi singer Olivia Foa’i


Alafapeta | Alphabet

The Tokelau alafapeta is made up of fifteen mataituhi (letters).

There are five vaueli (vowels): A – E – I – O – U

And ten konehane (consonants): F – G – K – L – M – N – P – H – T – V

3 of these consonants are pronounced a bit differently to English though:

F – sounds more like a breathy W, like when you blow out a candle.

G – is pronounced Ng. The Tuvaluan word for “language” – Gagana – is pronounced Nga-nga-na.

H – makes a “Hyuh” sound when placed before the letters A, O or U. The word hau sounds like “hyau”.

Helpful words

Mālō ni  — Hello

E ā mai koe? — How are you?

Ko au e mālohi, Fakafetai — I am well, thank you.

Ko koe te mata mālohi — You look well

Te mānaia o te aho — It’s a beautiful day

Ōmamai tātou hihiva fakataki — Come, let us dance!

Io! — Yes!

Te lelei ō koe — Well done!

Tōfā nī — Goodbye!

Kaokao — Armpit

Learn even more phrases using the Tokelau Language Cards from the Ministry for Pacific Peoples!

Tuhi | Books

We have two NEW 2023 books in Gagana Tokelau by David Riley!

Three of the stories below are bilingual, so you can read them in either English or Tokelau.

librarian holds 4 tokelau books

Here is Ethan a librarian at Newtown holding the new books from David Riley and two other classics.


Lightning boy /Ko te tama ko Uila by David Riley (2023)

Sometimes the least likely person is the one who solves a problem. That’s what happened to Uila the day that danger came to his family. Find out how in Lightning Boy, a bilingual legend from Tokelau.

The pearl shell necklace /Ko te kahoa pā by David Riley (2023)

How much would you do for someone you love? Kalokalo-o-te-la loved Hina so much he gave everything he had for her. Find out how in The Pearl Shell Necklace, a bilingual legend from Tokelau–Back cover.

Havali fakaua ki te fale/ Walking home in the Rain by Feauaʼi Amosa Burgess

Four Tokelauan kids have fun and play pretend in the rain on their way home from school.
Tokelau heroes / Riley, David

Part of David Riley’s beloved Pasifika Heroes series – Tokelau Heroes tells the inspirational stories of achievers who have Tokelauan ancestry. It includes legends like Hina; historical figures such as Ihaia Puka; and contemporary heroes like Opetaia Foa’i (Father of Olivia Foa’i mentioned above).

For more information about Tokelau, you may visit: