UN adds Norfolk language to endangered list (fwd)

[phil cash cash]

Friday, 17 August 2007, 16:15:04  AEST

UN adds Norfolk language to endangered list
http://www.abc.net.au/message/news/stories/ms_news_2008195.htm

The United Nations has included the language spoken by Norfolk Islanders on
its list of the world's languages in danger of disappearing.

The language, known locally as 'talking Norfolk', is a mixture of Olde
English and Tahitian and can be traced back to the Bounty mutineers.

Norfolk Island Chief Minister Andre Nobbs says inhabitants of the Island
have been seeking greater recognition of the language for many years.

"Establishing it in this way - especially as it is one of the rarest
languages in the world - gives us a great deal of pride and at the moment
we're looking at as many ways as possible to, as many other islands are
doing, to reinvigorate our culture," he said.