Language
The Norf’k language is recognised as a distinct and unique language.
The language developed in the isolation of Pitcairn Island in the 18th century and is known among the locals as “Norfolk”.
The Norfolk Island Language (Norf’k) Act was passed in 2004 to recognise Norf’k as an official language of the Island.
“Norfolk” was an oral language and therefore a uniform written dictionary does not exist from the early stages of its development.
Following the Mutiny on the Bounty, and the new community’s settlement on Pitcairn, a unique culture evolved ~ one distinctive feature was described by Loukakis (1984):
‘One of the most striking cultural developments to take place in this unusual Pacific Island society was the invention of a new language. Through day-to-day contact, the mix of people speaking Tahitian and other Polynesian languages, and eighteenth century English dialects, eventually developed a distinctive Pitcairnese language. Although owing more to English than to Polynesian, the ‘language of the mothers’ (largely Tahitian, that is), made its presence especially felt in the matter of vocabulary, providing words for which there were no English equivalents, or for which Tahitian just seemed more appropriate. This language they took with them when they finally moved to Norfolk and is the basis of the present Norfolk dialect.’
Credit : Bounty Museum