Papua New Guinea Pidgin language week cause of pride
New Zealand will have its first Papua New Guinea Pidgin language week in October. It means a lot to the small community that speaks and treasures the language here.
Waikato Constable Gerard Pambuai’s two children know when their mum means business — she starts speaking in another language.
“My wife is Pa¯keha¯ but spent time in Papua New Guinea. My kids know when she’s serious because she brings out the hard Pidgin,” he laughs.
The 41-year-old hails from Papua New Guinea, where he was born and raised before moving to New Zealand in his teenage years to attend school at Hamilton Boys’ High.
He still lives in Hamilton — with wife Clare, a 9-year-old son and
6-year-old daughter — and has worked as a police officer in the Waikato district for four years.
This year, in October, marks the first time there will be a Papua New Guinea Pidgin or Tok Pisin Language Week — one of 11 Pacific language weeks highlighted throughout the year as a way to help promote the learning and maintaining of Pacific languages in New Zealand.
The initiative, by the Ministry of Pacific Peoples, highlights the languages from Rotuma, Samoa, Kiribati, Cook Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Fiji, Niue, Tokelau, the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea.
They have also added a Solomon Islands Pidgin Language Week.
Pambuai said he is excited to see his first language honoured. It’s particularly special because the PNG population — like the Solomon Islands population — is small in New Zealand compared to other Pasifika cultures.
In the 2018 Census, 1131 people identified as being of Papua New Guinean descent. They are part of a
381,642-strong population of Pacific peoples living in Aotearoa.
“It’s not a culture that you’d see at a Polyfest, or [even] at a Melanesian festival. You look at the news — the weather reports, they never talk about Papua New Guinea.
“I don’t think a lot of people know where Papua New Guinea is. True story — I bump into people and the first thing they say is: ‘Bula’.”
The official languages in PNG are
My kids know when [my wife’s] serious because she brings out the hard Pidgin. Constable Gerard Pambuai
English, Tok Pisin (Papua New Guinea Pidgin), Hiri Motu and Papua New Guinean Sign Language.
Pambuai can speak PNG Pidgin and Motu, the language used mostly within the nation’s capital city, Port Moresby.
His linguistic skills are valued by the police, who used Pambuai to send out safety messages to the PNG community during Covid-19 lockdowns.
Pambuai keeps his language and heritage alive by teaching his children the words for everyday items at home — although his daughter mixes it up with te reo Ma¯ori.
They also regularly attend Melanesian festivals held in the community.
“They get the best of both worlds.” Pambuai said he hoped other Papua New Guineans in New Zealand would see him as a person from their community who can help, specifically if language is a barrier.
“I like to think that I’m a point of contact if anyone in my community needs help.”