Multilingualism in French Polynesia: Past and Future
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Section VI Multilingualism in French Polynesia: Past and future Multilingualism is in its very essence unstable, as it make it possible to perceive major tendencies for involves living languages whose dynamics depend the next 20 to 30 years, with regard to multi- above all on extra-linguistic factors. This funda- lingualism in French Polynesia. The future of lan- mental instability renders virtually impossible any guages in the country as a whole can only be un- prediction beyond two generations. derstood through an analysis archipelago-by- However, the six years of field research that archipelago, and language-by-language. As we will Jean-Michel Charpentier has just carried out in see, knowledge of the recent history of each region French Polynesia in over twenty different locations will enable us to draw up their future perspectives. The Marquesas In the Marquesas Islands, Marquesan remains the As for the third island, Ua Huka, it was essen- daily language for the majority of islanders. The tially depopulated in the 19th century, before being existence of two dialects, with their lexical and repopulated by both northern and southern Mar- phonetic specificities for each island, does not quesans. This is why the island itself is known un- hinder this fundamental linguistic unity. der two different names, Ua Huka (with a /k/ The 2012 census (ISPF 2012) gave a population typical of the northern dialect) and Ua Huna (with of 9,261 for the archipelago, among which two an /n/ typical of southern Marquesan).63 thirds lived in the Northern Marquesas (Nuku Hiva 2,967; Ua Pou 2,175; Ua Huka 621), and one third The island of Hiva Oa, in southern Marquesas, (3,498 inhabitants) lived in the southern part. has Atuona as its capital, with two colleges and an Nuku Hiva, both the largest and most populated administrative centre. As in Taiohae, external in- of the northern islands, has Taiohae as its capital, fluences are numerous; however, the lack of rapid where both tahitianization and francization are in land communications maintains certain villages progress. Thanks to a good road network, it is fairly isolated. Similarly, the absence of landing common to work in the capital and continue to live strips in Tahuata and in Fatu Hiva maintains a kind in the villages situated in the island’s valleys. This of geographical isolation favourable to the daily explains how outside linguistic influences have use of local dialects alone. This current situation recently penetrated into the heart of the island of helps to slow down the linguistic erosion that can Nuku Hiva, to such an extent that they have re- be observed in other parts of the territory. placed the local varieties. Thus, the speech of the The vitality of the two main dialects in the Mar- Taipivai valley disappeared a few decades ago; and quesas – north and south – is almost identical. The even the main Marquesan vernacular on the island number of active speakers in these two groups, for is now under threat. Conversely, Ua Pou is without doubt the island of 63 Table 6 p.38 showed that Northern Marquesan /k/ regu- the northern group where the ancient Marquesan larly corresponds with Southern Marquesan /n/, when dialect has been best preserved. they reflect the proto-phoneme *ŋ. 112 — Multilingualism in French Polynesia: Past and future example, is no doubt very similar. In addition, this sively in French and Tahitian, the phonetics of Ta- equilibrium is maintained by all the speakers by hitian have become more familiar, and are begin- virtue of an egalitarian bilingualism:64 two people ning to influence the speech of younger genera- coming from different islands can have a conversa- tions. Thus in the southern islands, where the tion in which each speaks his or her dialect, with- glottal stop /৯/ showed an earlier tendency to fade out feeling forced to speak the dialect of the other. out or even disappear, it is once more becoming Two radios with daily broadcasts in Marquesan, very distinct among the younger generations, no a very dynamic academy, and an art festival whose doubt under the the influence of Tahitian, heard on reputation goes largely beyond the frontiers of television as well as in Tahitian classes at school. French Polynesia, combine to maintain the Mar- Even if is not threatened in the short term, the quesan language. For the past twenty years, a new future of the Marquesan language is a cause for pride, shared by all generations, has resulted in a concern. Because the many Marquesans living in cultural rebirth, and this self-confidence reflects on Papeete are gradually blending in with the popula- the use of the language. tion of the capital, the preservation of this rich In sum, tahitianization remains more limited in heritage depends entirely on the 9,300 native the Marquesas than in other archipelagos. Mixed speakers who still live in the Marquesas. As eve- marriages (Tahitians/Marquesans) are still rela- rywhere in French Polynesia, the vernacular is es- tively rare in the Marquesas, and often result in the sentially used by the elders: thus, when it became use of French between the couples, rather than necessary to recruit teachers to give classes in Tahitian. Marquesan, almost all the potential candidates had The influence of Tahitian in the Marquesas is felt reached retirement age. Only the setting up of in- especially in the media and the administration. All dustries to transform local products might slow documents coming from Papeete are written in down the exodus of the younger generation. The French and Tahitian, and some of the administra- opening of an upper secondary school would keep tive vocabulary is of Tahitian origin. As the coun- them longer on their islands. If nothing is done to try’s television channels broadcast almost exclu- stop the erosion of Marquesan, within just a few decades the two processes of tahitanization and of 64 About this notion – used in a Melanesian context – see francization will have seen the disappearance of a Haudricourt (1961) and François (2012). language. The Tuamotus Of the five archipelagos that make up French longer controlled their linguistic and cultural des- Polynesia, the Tuamotus are linguistically the most tiny. The north-western linguistic area, Mihiroa, complex, due to the number and history of its dia- and the north-west of Tapuhoe (Map 3 p.75) are lectal variants. It follows that any policy of safe- already tahitianized. guarding and teaching the languages is more diffi- The eastern Tuamotus, which are composed of cult to implement here than elsewhere. groups of isolated atolls, show linguistic peculiari- Of all the dialects of Polynesia, those of the ties which beg the question of the actual origin of Tuamotus have the smallest numbers of speakers. their settlement. The Napuka-Tepoto, Fangatau- The 2012 census reveals a total population of Fakahina and Reao-Pukarua atolls often present 15,410 for the whole archipelago. The sheer im- their own specific vocabulary, unknown elsewhere mensity of this territory and dispersion of settle- in French Polynesia. Several hypotheses may be ments make it necessary to distinguish between put forward to explain these specificities. In some geographical zones. cases this originality may reflect some local inno- The north-western part of this archipelago, vation, which may have occurred at some stage in where the largest number of pearl farms is to be this region. Conversely, it may happen that some of found, has been largely influenced by Tahitian, at the local linguistic peculiarities are in fact conser- least until the beginning of the crisis which hit this vative of earlier specificities of these languages. If activity a few years ago. The depopulation due to such is the case, then it implies that settlement in this economic activity entailed a drastic demo- the Tuamotus occurred in successive waves: the graphic drain on the atolls. These minorities no differences between east and west do not stem The Tuamotus — 113 from any hypothetical (proto-) Pa’umotu cultural tion of vanquished populations, who would have source, but rather from distinct waves which suc- fled from their native valley. At least this is what cessively populated these islands. This hypothesis certain myths and legends tend to suggest, and seems confirmed by the fact that some of the vo- such legends are known to sometimes show his- cabulary unknown in western Tuamotus and in torical accuracy.66 Tahitian can be found in Marquesan and occasion- ally in Mangarevan: this would support the hypo- The Fangatau-Fakahina atolls thesis of a settlement of this eastern zone coming from the Marquesas. Archaeological excavation or The language of Fangatau-Fakahina offers less historical research may one day allow us to know lexical singularities than that of Napuka-Tepoto. It whether these commonalities found between the is true that these atolls (300 inhabitants) are eastern Tuamotus and the neighbouring Marque- closer to the dialects of central Tuamotus, which sas reflect a common origin, or whether they are has always facilitated exchanges between these more recent borrowings, which may be explained populations. by the geographical position of these atolls half The economic potential of these atolls is quite way between the Marquesas and the Gambier Is- substantial, through copra. However, its exploita- lands: stopovers in the trading networks, the east- tion is subject to a concentration of land owner- ern islands of the Tuamotus may have borrowed ship with the obligation to prepare copra belong- 65 part of their vocabulary from passing travellers. ing to others, a form of tenant farming which Today, each group of atolls presents a specific leaves the worker with only 50 percent of the re- sociolinguistic situation – even if tahitianization tail price.