OPINION It’s Samoan Language Week in Aotearoa but for me, every week is Samoan language week. English is my first language and growing up, while my parents spoke Samoan to me at home, I would always reply in English. I can understand some Samoan but I don’t speak it.
As the youngest in my family, I’d ask my siblings: ‘What are they saying’? I’d feel like an egg because I wasn’t confident in my mother tongue. There was the realisation that I couldn’t fully appreciate cultural family events, because when something is translated into English, it’s the diluted version. ‘I’d have to say I can’t speak Samoan’ Not understanding my mother tongue made me feel deprived and like I was missing out.
There were awkward situations when someone would speak Samoan to me and I’d have to say: ‘Sorry, I can’t speak Samoan’. So for the past year, I’ve been taking Samoan language classes. It’s been difficult, but I ask myself constantly: ‘Why am I doing this’? Other than a goal to converse with my father fluently and naturally, I’d love to tap into our indigenous knowledge and understand why we do things the way we do as Samoans.
Language helps shape the culture and people and gives an insight into their mindset. I’m Samoan but feel I have aspects of Western thinking as a New Zealand-born Samoan. Language is a barrier for some, so when you can speak to an elder in their mother tongue, their guard automatically drops.
A whole person’s demeanour change.