Being a Niuean or Being Niue? An Investigation into the Use of Identity Labels

Abstract

Identity labels are used by in-group and out-group members to define themselves both referentially and socially. This article explores the use of identity labels in interview data from the Pasifika Languages of Manukau Project, a project that examined the language maintenance and use of Samoan, Tongan, Cook Island, and Niuean peoples in Auckland, New Zealand. Fourteen 1 hour interviews were analysed and 3,162 instances of the 2 terms Niuean and Niue were extracted from the speech of the interviewer and her participants. Although the findings show a strong preference for the use of Niuean, the interviewer and the majority of her participants use both labels. For most of the participants in the study, Niue is a marked form used to express solidarity. The article contrasts this use with that of another participant who associates the label Niuean with out-group use. Extracts from the latter interview show how the Niuean label is used both for “othering” and for expressing solidarity. The article ends with commentary on the potential effects of these in-group labels on language planning initiatives in the New Zealand Niuean community.