<div dir="ltr"><h1 class="gmail-c-story-header__headline" style="box-sizing:inherit;font-size:48px;margin:0px 0px 0.4em;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;clear:both;line-height:1.2;letter-spacing:-0.01563em">Tokelau to standardise national language</h1><div class="gmail-c-story-header__meta" style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline"><div class="gmail-c-dateblock" style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;float:left"><span class="gmail-updated" style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:15px;vertical-align:middle;line-height:1.2;color:rgb(109,117,112);display:inline-block">4:56 pm on 1 April 2019</span> </div><div class="gmail-c-social" style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;float:right"><span class="gmail-share-text" style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px 0.4em 0px 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:15px;vertical-align:middle;color:rgb(109,117,112);display:inline-block">Share this</span> <div class="gmail-c-social__buttons" style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:middle;display:inline-block"><ul style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;list-style:none"><li style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px 3px 0px 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;display:block;text-align:center;float:left"><a class="gmail-ga-tw-share gmail-share-btn gmail-share-btn__twitter" href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Tokelau%20to%20standardise%20national%20language&url=https://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/386082/tokelau-to-standardise-national-language" title="Share on Twitter" target="_blank" style="box-sizing:inherit;background-color:rgb(38,147,221);margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;text-decoration-line:none;color:rgb(255,255,255);display:block;border-radius:50%;width:36px;height:36px;overflow:hidden"><span style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;vertical-align:baseline;overflow:hidden;padding:0px;border:0px;height:1px;width:1px">Share on Twitter</span></a></li><li style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px 3px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;display:block;text-align:center;float:left"><a class="gmail-ga-fb-share gmail-share-btn gmail-share-btn__facebook" href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.radionz.co.nz%2Finternational%2Fpacific-news%2F386082%2Ftokelau-to-standardise-national-language" title="Share on Facebook" target="_blank" style="box-sizing:inherit;background-color:rgb(55,68,168);margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;text-decoration-line:none;color:rgb(255,255,255);display:block;border-radius:50%;width:36px;height:36px;overflow:hidden"><span style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;vertical-align:baseline;overflow:hidden;padding:0px;border:0px;height:1px;width:1px">Share on Facebook</span></a></li><li style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px 3px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;display:block;text-align:center;float:left"><a class="gmail-ga-em-share gmail-share-btn gmail-share-btn__email" href="mailto:%20?subject=Tokelau%20to%20standardise%20national%20language&body=I%20thought%20you%20might%20be%20interested%20in%20this%20page%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.radionz.co.nz%2Finternational%2Fpacific-news%2F386082%2Ftokelau-to-standardise-national-language%20from%20Radio%20New%20Zealand." title="Share by Email" style="box-sizing:inherit;background-color:rgb(237,97,90);margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;text-decoration-line:none;color:rgb(255,255,255);display:block;border-radius:50%;width:36px;height:36px;overflow:hidden"><span style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;vertical-align:baseline;overflow:hidden;padding:0px;border:0px;height:1px;width:1px">Share via email</span></a></li><li style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px 3px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;display:block;text-align:center;float:left"><a class="gmail-ga-gp-share gmail-share-btn gmail-share-btn__google" href="https://plus.google.com/share?url=https://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/386082/tokelau-to-standardise-national-language" target="_blank" title="Share on Google Plus" style="box-sizing:inherit;background-color:rgb(221,75,57);margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;text-decoration-line:none;color:rgb(255,255,255);display:block;border-radius:50%;width:36px;height:36px;overflow:hidden"><span style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;vertical-align:baseline;overflow:hidden;padding:0px;border:0px;height:1px;width:1px">Share on Google Plus</span></a></li><li style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px 3px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;display:block;text-align:center;float:left"><a class="gmail-ga-re-share gmail-share-btn gmail-share-btn__reddit" href="https://www.reddit.com/submit?url=https://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/386082/tokelau-to-standardise-national-language" target="_blank" title="Share on Reddit" style="box-sizing:inherit;background-color:rgb(255,69,0);margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;text-decoration-line:none;color:rgb(255,255,255);display:block;border-radius:50%;width:36px;height:36px;overflow:hidden"><span style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;vertical-align:baseline;overflow:hidden;padding:0px;border:0px;height:1px;width:1px">Share on Reddit</span></a></li><li style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px 0px 0px 3px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;display:block;text-align:center;float:left"><a class="gmail-ga-li-share gmail-share-btn gmail-share-btn__linkedin" href="https://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/386082/tokelau-to-standardise-national-language" target="_blank" title="Share on Linked In" style="box-sizing:inherit;background-color:rgb(0,123,182);margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;text-decoration-line:none;color:rgb(255,255,255);display:block;border-radius:50%;width:36px;height:36px;overflow:hidden"><span style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;vertical-align:baseline;overflow:hidden;padding:0px;border:0px;height:1px;width:1px">Share on Linked In</span></a></li></ul></div></div></div><div class="gmail-article__body" style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px 0px 1.5em;border:0px;font-size:16px;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(64,68,65);font-family:Colfax,Arial,sans-serif"><p style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px 0px 0.75em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;vertical-align:baseline;line-height:1.5;font-family:"PT Serif",Georgia,serif">Tokelau's government is looking at standardising its national language.</p><div class="gmail-photo-captioned gmail-photo-captioned-full gmail-photo-cntr eight_col" style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:2.25em 0px 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;max-width:100%;clear:both"><img src="https://www.radionz.co.nz/assets/news/86730/eight_col_FLAG_WIND.jpg?1477341860" width="720" height="450" alt="no caption" style="box-sizing: inherit; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 1.125em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 100%; height: auto; width: 533.875px; float: left;"><p class="gmail-photo-captioned__information" style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;vertical-align:baseline;line-height:1.25;display:inline-block"><span class="gmail-credit" style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(179,179,172)">Photo: <span style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline">RNZI / Koro Vaka'uta</span></span></p></div><p style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;vertical-align:baseline;line-height:1.5;font-family:"PT Serif",Georgia,serif">The changes, which were put forward at its parliamentary meeting this month, are in response to a different alphabet used in New Zealand.</p><p style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;vertical-align:baseline;line-height:1.5;font-family:"PT Serif",Georgia,serif">Tokelau's ulu, or leader, Kelihiano Kalolo, said there had been difficulties trying to coordinate meetings because of the language differences.</p><p style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;vertical-align:baseline;line-height:1.5;font-family:"PT Serif",Georgia,serif">"Language is very very important for us, that's how we express ourselves as Tokelauans. We are thinking of the future of our children who will grow up, they must grow up with ... a common approach rather than having different versions."</p><p style="box-sizing:inherit;margin:0.75em 0px 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;vertical-align:baseline;line-height:1.5;font-family:"PT Serif",Georgia,serif">Kelihiano Kalolo said a working group will be tasked with establishing a new language policy.</p></div><div><br></div>-- <br><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature">=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+<br><br> Harold F. Schiffman<br><br>Professor Emeritus of <br> Dravidian Linguistics and Culture <br>Dept. of South Asia Studies                     <br>University of Pennsylvania<br>Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305<br><br>Phone:  (215) 898-7475<br>Fax:  (215) 573-2138                                      <br><br>Email:  <a href="mailto:haroldfs@gmail.com" target="_blank">haroldfs@gmail.com</a><br><a href="http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/" target="_blank">http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/</a>    <br><br>-------------------------------------------------</div></div>