Vagahau Niue

Young person with patterned shirt and necklace.

Fakaalofa lahi atu!

Niue (Vagahau Niue) Language Week takes place from Sunday 15 October to Saturday 21 October 2023.

Raise the mana of speakers of Vagahau Niue. Find and acknowledge the experts in your school and community who can help your school celebrate Vagahau Niue Language Week.

Niue language

Vagahau Niue consists of two main dialects:

the Motu dialect from the north of the island
the Tafiti dialect of the south.

Of all the Pacific languages, Niuean is most closely related to Tongan.

More Niuean speakers live outside of Niue than in Niue, and like many Pacific languages, Niuean is an endangered language.

Reviving Niuean

New Zealand's Minister for Pacific Peoples, Aupito William Sio

Push to support endangered Niuean language (2018 RNZ)
Nurturing and embracing the Niuean language (2018 Beehive)

Takalo project
A new takalo or traditional Niue war dance was composed by Lavea Puheke a young composer in Niue and was filmed at the historical Māori land site Ihumatao in Auckland.

Niue men lay challenge to elevate language (2020)
This article from Tagata Pasifika contains photos and information about the Takalo project as a group of 40 Niue men danced with the challenge to keep their language alive.

Hope for the Niuean language in Aotearoa
Rosa Kalauni shares her experience as a Niuean educator in Auckland.

Case study

Case study: Vagahau Niue Language Week 21 July 2021

The New Zealand Niue community has taken swift and strong action in response to concerns about the declining speakers of Vagahau Niue (Niuean language). The Vagahau Niue Trust has been heavily involved in preserving the Niue language and culture.

This case study explores how to mobilise young people and create effective partnerships.

Language resources

Use the language resources on the tabs.

Vagahau Niue contains:

Tau Hatakiaga ma e Vagahau Niue: The Niue language guidelines
Haia! An Introduction to Vagahau Niue
Niue storybooks

Niue Language Week
NZC Online provides curriculum connections and ideas about how your class and your school can participate in this language week.

Resources for Niue Language Week 2023 – downloadable resources from the Ministry for Pacific Peoples.

Ponataki – Niue Language Educational Resource 2016

Members of the Niue community in New Zealand brought together ideas and developed this resource. Downloadable as a PDF.

Ponataki - Niue Language Educational Resource (PDF, 2 MB)

Tohi Vagahau Niue | Niue language dictionary
Auckland University of Technology provides access to this online resource where you can search for words in both English and Vagahau Niue.

Useful phrases in Niuean
A collection of useful phrases in Vagahau Niuē | Niuean language. The site also provides information about Niuean language and numbers in Niuean.