Celebrate: 26 October - 1 November 2025
The 2025 theme for Tokelau Language Week is ‘Tokelau, Puaki mai ko tau aganuku mo fanau i te lumanaki – Tokelau, Unleash your culture for future generations’.
The Pacific Language Weeks series began in 2011, led by the Ministry for Pacific Peoples (MPP), and the Tokelau Language Week was introduced in 2012, with 2025 therefore being its 14th year of running.
Gagana Tokelau is the language of the people of Tokelau, a group of three small atolls in the Pacific (Atafu, Nukunonu, and Fakaofo). According to the 2023 Aotearoa New Zealand census, the population of those identifying with the Tokelauan ethnic group stands at 9,822, with 47.6% residing in Wellington and 33.7% speaking a second language.
As we know, language is central to identity, family, and wellbeing. The main aims of these language weeks are to:
· Celebrate Pacific languages and cultures as a vital part of New Zealand’s heritage
· Encourage language use in families, schools, workplaces and communities
· Support language revitalisation, as many Pacific languages are considered endangered or at risk
· Promote understanding and inclusion
For many Tokelauans in Aotearoa, the week is more than a celebration; it’s about preserving a language at risk of being lost, strengthening family and community bonds, and ensuring that young Tokelauans grow up proud of who they are.
There are many events happening over the next few days in Aotearoa, from Auckland down to Dunedin. Please see the Ministry of Pacific Peoples website for more details:
https://www.mpp.govt.nz/programmes-and-funding/pacific-languages/pacific-language-weeks/tokelau-language-week/
