Source: Porirua City Council
Winter might be coming, but the Pacific greetings will be warm as we approach the start of Pacific Language weeks in Porirua for 2026.
The first country to be celebrated is Rotuma, from 10-15 May, where an event will take place at Pātaka on Monday morning, 11 May. Themes of the different Pacific nations have always been based on sustainability of people, culture, identity and language, which is something we support in Porirua, as the United Nations warns at least 40 per cent of the world’s 7000 languages are in danger of being lost.
With Bislama, the official language of Vanuatu, added in 2025, there are now 12 language weeks to commemorate, along with Māori Language Week (the latter in September).
Porirua Mayor Anita Baker says raising the flag at the Peace Memorial on the edge of Te Rauparaha Park, or having a celebration at Pātaka, is one small way we can honour and recognise the vibrancy of the nearly 27 per cent of Porirua’s population that nominates themselves as Pacific.
“We have one of the most culturally diverse populations in the country and I love that we highlight it wherever we can,” Mayor Baker says.
“At Council we have a Pacific Strategy, which we adopted in 2023, which has an aim of making people of all nations that live in our city feel welcome and being able to celebrate where they’ve come from, and their culture and heritage.
“I watch our residents, young and old, developing relationships and reveling in what makes their language so unique – we need to continue to support and applaud that pride.”
Individual language week themes will be announced closer to the time so keep an eye on Council’s social media pages as we highlight flag-raising and other Pacific Language Week activities. There is also information at mpp.govt.nz.
Pacific Language Week dates for 2026:
Rotuma: 10-16 May
Samoa: 31 May-6 June
Kiribati: 5-11 July
Vanuatu: 26 July-1 August
Cook Islands Māori: 2-8 August
Tonga: 16-22 August
Papua New Guinea Pidgin: 6-12 September
Tuvalu: 27 September-3 October
Fiji: 4-10 October
Niue: 18-24 October
Tokelau: 25-31 October
Solomon Islands Pidgin: 22-28 November
Note that Māori Language Week is 20-26 September.
