View source for Polynesian languages

{{Short description|Language family}}
{{use dmy dates|date=October 2024}}
{{Infobox language family
|name= Polynesian
|region= [[Polynesia]]
|ethnicity= [[Polynesians]]
|familycolor= Austronesian
|fam2= [[Malayo-Polynesian languages|Malayo-Polynesian]]
|fam3= [[Oceanic languages|Oceanic]]
|fam4= [[Central Pacific languages|Central Pacific]]
|fam5= East Central Pacific
|protoname= [[Proto-Polynesian language|Proto-Polynesian]]
|child1= [[Tongic languages|Tongic]]
|child2= [[Nuclear Polynesian languages|Nuclear Polynesian]]
|glotto= poly1242
|glottorefname= Polynesian
|map= Fijian-Polynesian.svg
|mapcaption= '''The Central Pacific languages'''<br />[[Olive (colour)|Olive]]-Green: East Fijian-Polynesian Languages (not shown: [[Rapanui language|Rapa Nui]])<br />Pink: Western Fijian-Rotuman Languages
}}

The '''Polynesian languages''' form a [[Language family|genealogical group of languages]], itself part of the [[Oceanic languages|Oceanic]] branch of the [[Austronesian languages|Austronesian family]].

There are 38 Polynesian languages, representing 7 percent of the 522 Oceanic languages, and 3 percent of the Austronesian family.<ref>{{Glottolog|poly1242}}.</ref> While half of them are spoken in geographical [[Polynesia]] (the [[Polynesian triangle]]), the other half &ndash; known as [[Polynesian outliers]] &ndash; are spoken in other parts of the Pacific: from [[Micronesia]] to atolls scattered in [[Papua New Guinea]], the [[Solomon Islands]] or [[Vanuatu]]. The most prominent Polynesian languages, by number of speakers, are [[Samoan language|Samoan]], [[Tongan language|Tongan]], [[Tahitian language|Tahitian]], [[Māori language|Māori]] and [[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]].

The ancestors of modern Polynesians were [[Lapita culture|Lapita navigators]], who settled in the [[Tonga]] and [[Samoa]] areas about 3,000 years ago. Linguists and archaeologists estimate that this first population went through common development during about 1000 years, giving rise to [[Proto-Polynesian language|Proto-Polynesian]], the linguistic ancestor of all modern Polynesian languages. After that period of shared development, the Proto-Polynesian society split into several descendant populations, as [[Polynesian navigation|Polynesian navigators]] scattered around various archipelagoes across the Pacific &ndash; some travelling [[Polynesian outliers|westwards to already populated areas]], others navigating eastwards and settling in new territories ([[Society Islands]], [[Marquesas]], [[Hawaii]], [[Māori people|New Zealand]], [[Rapa Nui]], etc.).

Still today, Polynesian languages show strong similarity, particularly [[cognate]] words in their vocabulary; this includes culturally important words such as ''[[tapu (Polynesian culture)|tapu]]'', ''[[ariki]]'', ''[[motu (geography)|motu]]'', ''[[Vanua#Polynesian languages|fenua]]'', ''[[kava]]'', and ''[[tapa cloth|tapa]]'' as well as [[wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Nuclear Polynesian/Sawaiki#Proto-Nuclear Polynesian|*''sawaiki'']], the mythical homeland for some of the cultures.<ref name="buckh">{{cite book |title=Vikings of the Sunrise |last=Hīroa |first=Te Rangi |author-link=Te Rangi Hīroa |year=1964 |publisher=Whitcombe and Tombs Ltd |location=New Zealand |page=69 |url=https://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-BucViki-t1-front-d1-d1.html |access-date=21 August 2010 |isbn=0-313-24522-3 }}</ref>

==Internal classification==
===Phylogenetic classification===
Polynesian languages fall into two branches, [[Tongic languages|Tongic]] and [[Nuclear Polynesian languages|Nuclear Polynesian]]. [[Tongan language|Tongan]] and [[Niuean language|Niuean]] constitute the Tongic branch; all the rest are part of the Nuclear Polynesian branch.<ref>{{cite book | last = Lynch | first = John | author-link = John Lynch (linguist) |author2=Malcolm Ross |author2-link=Malcolm Ross (linguist) |author3=Terry Crowley |author3-link=Terry Crowley (linguist) | year = 2002 | title = The Oceanic languages | location = Richmond, Surrey | publisher = Curzon | isbn = 978-0-7007-1128-4 | oclc = 48929366 }}</ref>

{{tree list}}
*'''Polynesian'''
**[[Nuclear Polynesian languages|Nuclear Polynesian]]
***Ellicean
****Ellicean–Outlier
*****[[Tuvaluan language|Tuvaluan]]
*****[[Nukuoro language|Nukuoro]] ([[Nukuoro]] in the [[Federated States of Micronesia]])
*****[[Kapingamarangi language|Kapingamarangi]] (on [[Kapingamarangi]] in [[Federated States of Micronesia]])
*****[[Nukuria language|Nukuria]] ([[Nuguria]] in eastern [[Papua New Guinea]])<ref>{{cite journal|last=Marck |first=Jeff |year=2000 |title=Topics in Polynesian languages and culture history |url=https://openresearch-repository.anu.edu.au/bitstream/1885/90887/2/Marck-2000-PolynesianLanguageCultureHistory.pdf  |location=Canberra |journal=Pacific Linguistics}}</ref>
*****[[Takuu language|Takuu]] ([[Takuu Atoll]] in eastern [[Papua New Guinea]])
*****[[Nukumanu language|Nukumanu]] ([[Nukumanu]] in the east of [[Papua New Guinea]])
*****[[Ontong Java language|Ontong Java]] (or Luangiua; [[Ontong Java]], [[Solomon Islands]])
*****[[Sikaiana language|Sikaiana]] ([[Sikaiana]], [[Solomon Islands]])
*****[[Vaeakau-Taumako language|Pileni]] ([[Reef Islands]], [[Solomon Islands]])
****[[Samoic languages|Samoic]]
*****[[Samoan language|Samoan]]
*****[[Tokelauan language|Tokelauan]]
***Eastern Polynesian
****[[Rapa Nui language|Rapa Nui]] ([[Easter Island]])
**** Central–Eastern Polynesian
***** Marquesic
******Marquesan–Mangareva
*******[[Marquesan language|Marquesan]] ([[Marquesas Islands]], [[French Polynesia]])
*******[[Mangareva language|Mangareva]] ([[Gambier Islands]], [[French Polynesia]])
******[[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]] ([[Hawaii]])
***** Tahitic
******[[Tahitian language|Tahitian]] ([[Society Islands]], [[French Polynesia]])
******[[Austral language|Austral]] ([[Austral Islands]], [[French Polynesia]])
******[[Rapa language|Rapa]] ([[Rapa Iti]], [[French Polynesia]])
******[[Tuamotuan language|Tuamotuan]] ([[Tuamotu|Tuamotu Archipelago]], French Polynesia)
******[[Cook Islands Māori|Rarotongan]] (Cook Islands Māori, [[Cook Islands]])
******[[Rakahanga-Manihiki language|Rakahanga-Manihiki]] ([[Rakahanga]] and [[Manihiki]], [[Northern Cook Islands]])
******[[Penrhyn language|Penrhyn]] (or Tongarevan; [[Tongareva atoll|Tongareva]], [[Northern Cook Islands]])
******[[Māori language|Māori]] ([[New Zealand]])
******[[Moriori language|Moriori]] ([[Chatham Islands]], [[New Zealand]]) †
***Futunic (?):
****[[Wallisian language|Wallisian]] or East Uvean (Fakaʻuvea) ([[Wallis (island)|Wallis Island]], [[Wallis and Futuna]])
****[[Futunan language|Futunan]] or East Futunan (Fakafutuna) ([[Futuna (Wallis and Futuna)|Futuna Island]], [[Wallis and Futuna]])
****[[West Uvean language|West Uvean]] or Faga Uvea ([[Ouvéa]] off [[New Caledonia]])
****[[Pukapukan language|Pukapukan]] ([[Pukapuka]], northern [[Cook Islands]])
****[[Anuta language|Anuta]] ([[Anuta|Anuta Island]], [[Solomon Islands]])
****[[Rennellese language|Rennellese]] ([[Rennell Island|Rennell]] and [[Bellona Island|Bellona]] island, [[Solomon Islands]])
****[[Tikopia language|Tikopia]] ([[Tikopia|Tikopia Island]], [[Solomon Islands]])
****[[Vaeakau-Taumako language|Vaeakau-Taumako]] (?) ([[Reef Islands]] and [[Taumako]] island, [[Solomon Islands]])
****[[Futuna-Aniwa language|Futuna-Aniwa]] or West Futunan ([[Futuna Island, Vanuatu|Futuna]] and [[Aniwa Island|Aniwa]] in [[Vanuatu]])
****[[Mele-Fila language|Mele-Fila]] ([[Mele (island)|Mele Island]], [[Vanuatu]])
****[[Emae language|Emae]] ([[Emae|Emae Island]], [[Vanuatu]])
**[[Tongic languages|Tongic]]
***[[Tongan language|Tongan]]
***[[Niuafoʻou language|Niuafoʻou]] (on [[Niuafoʻou|Niuafoʻou Island]], [[Tonga]])
***[[Niuean language|Niuean]]
{{tree list/end}}

===History of classification===
The contemporary classification of the Polynesian languages began with certain observations by [[Andrew Pawley]] in 1966 based on shared innovations in phonology, vocabulary and grammar showing that the East Polynesian languages were more closely related to Samoan than they were to Tongan, calling Tongan and its nearby relative Niuean "Tongic" and Samoan and all other Polynesian languages of the study "Nuclear Polynesian".<ref name="pawley66">Pawley, Andrew, 1966, Polynesian languages: a subgrouping based upon shared innovations in morphology. ''Journal of the Polynesian Society'' 75(1):39–64. {{JSTOR|20704348}}.</ref>

Previously, there had been lexicostatistical studies<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Elbert |first=Samuel H. |date=July 1953 |title=Internal Relationships of Polynesian Languages and Dialects |url=https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/soutjanth.9.2.3628573 |journal=Southwestern Journal of Anthropology |language=en |volume=9 |issue=2 |pages=147–173 |doi=10.1086/soutjanth.9.2.3628573 |issn=0038-4801|jstor=3628573|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Emory|first=Kenneth P. |date=1963 |title=East Polynesian relationships: settlement pattern and time involved as indicated by vocabulary agreements |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/20704084 |journal=The Journal of the Polynesian Society |volume=72 |issue=2 |pages=78–100 |issn=0032-4000|jstor=20704084}}</ref> that squarely suggested a "West Polynesian" group composed of at least Tongan and Samoan and that an "East Polynesian" group was equally distant from both Tongan and Samoan.

Pawley published another study in 1967.<ref name="pawley67">Pawley, Andrew, 1967, The relationships of Polynesian Outlier languages. ''Journal of the Polynesian Society'' 76(3):259–296. {{JSTOR|20704480}}.</ref> It began the process of extracting relationships from Polynesian languages on small islands in Melanesia, the "[[Polynesian Outliers]]", whose languages Pawley was able to trace to East Futuna in the case of those farther south and perhaps to Samoa itself in the case of those more to the north.

Except for some minor differentiation of the East Polynesian tree, further study paused for almost twenty years until Wilson<ref name="Wilson85">Wilson, William H., 1985, Evidence for an Outlier source for the Proto-Eastern-Polynesian pronominal system. ''Oceanic Linguistics'' 24(1/2):85-133. {{doi|10.2307/3623064}}. {{JSTOR|3623064}}.</ref> published a study of Polynesian pronominal systems in 1985 suggesting that there was a special relationship between the East Polynesian languages and all other Nuclear Polynesian but for Futunic, and calling that extra-Futunic group the "[[Ellicean languages]]". Furthermore, East Polynesian was found to more likely have emerged from extra-Samoan Ellicean than out of Samoa itself, in contradiction to the long assumption of a Samoan homeland for the origins of East Polynesian. Wilson named this new group "Ellicean" after the pre-independence name of Tuvalu and presented evidence for subgroups within that overarching category.

Marck,<ref name="Marck">Marck, Jeff (2000), ''Topics in Polynesian languages and culture history''. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics.</ref> in 2000, was able to offer some support for some aspects of Wilson's suggestion through comparisons of shared sporadic (irregular, unexpected) sound changes, e.&nbsp;g., Proto-Polynesian and Proto-Nuclear-Polynesian *mafu 'to heal' becoming Proto-Ellicean *mafo. This was made possible by the massive Polynesian language comparative lexicon ("Pollex" – with reconstructions) of Biggs and Clark.<ref name="Biggs, Bruce 1990">Biggs, Bruce (1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994) and Bruce Biggs and Ross Clark (1996), [https://pollex.eva.mpg.de/ Pollex: Comparative Polynesian Lexicon (computer data base)]. Auckland: Department of Anthropology, University of Auckland.</ref>

===Internal correspondences===
Partly because Polynesian languages split from one another comparatively recently, many words in these languages remain similar to corresponding words in others. The table below demonstrates this with the words for 'sky', 'north wind', 'woman', 'house' and 'parent' in a representative selection of languages: [[Tongan language|Tongan]]; [[Niuean language|Niuean]]; [[Samoan language|Samoan]]; [[Sikaiana language|Sikaiana]]; [[Takuu]]; [[North Marquesan language|North Marquesan]]; [[South Marquesan language|South Marquesan]]; [[Mangarevan language|Mangarevan]]; [[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]]; [[Rapanui language]]; [[Tahitian language|Tahitian]]; [[Māori language|Māori]] and [[Cook Islands Māori]] (Rarotongan).
<div style="overflow:auto;">
{| class="wikitable" |
!
!Tongan
!Niuean
!Samoan
!Sikaiana
!Takuu
!North Marquesan
!South Marquesan
!Mangarevan
!Hawaiian
!Rapanui
!Tahitian
!Māori
!Rarotongan
|-
|''sky''
|{{IPA|/laŋi/}}
|{{IPA|/laŋi/}}
|{{IPA|/laŋi/}}
|{{IPA|/lani/}}
|{{IPA|/ɾani/}}
|{{IPA|/ʔaki/}}
|{{IPA|/ʔani/}}
|{{IPA|/ɾaŋi/}}
|{{IPA|/lani/}}
|{{IPA|/ɾaŋi/}}
|{{IPA|/ɾaʔi/}}
|{{IPA|/ɾaŋi/}}
|{{IPA|/ɾaŋi/}}
|-
|''north wind''
|{{IPA|/tokelau/}}
|{{IPA|/tokelau/}}
|{{IPA|/toʔelau/}}
|{{IPA|/tokelau/}}
|{{IPA|/tokoɾau/}}
|{{IPA|/tokoʔau/}}
|{{IPA|/tokoʔau/}}
|{{IPA|/tokeɾau/}}
|{{IPA|/koʔolau/}}
|{{IPA|/tokeɾau/}}
|{{IPA|/toʔeɾau/}}
|{{IPA|/tokeɾau/}}
|{{IPA|/tokeɾau/}}
|-
|''woman''
|{{IPA|/fefine/}}
|{{IPA|/fifine/}}
|{{IPA|/fafine/}}
|{{IPA|/hahine/}}
|{{IPA|/ffine/}}
|{{IPA|/vehine/}}
|{{IPA|/vehine/}}
|{{IPA|/veine/}}
|{{IPA|/wahine/}}
|
|{{IPA|/vahine/}}
|{{IPA|/wahine/}}
|{{IPA|/vaʔine/}}
|-
|''house''
|{{IPA|/fale/}}
|{{IPA|/fale/}}
|{{IPA|/fale/}}
|{{IPA|/hale/}}
|{{IPA|/faɾe/}}
|{{IPA|/haʔe/}}
|{{IPA|/haʔe/}}
|{{IPA|/faɾe/}}
|{{IPA|/hale/}}
|{{IPA|/haɾe/}}
|{{IPA|/faɾe/}}
|{{IPA|/ɸaɾe/}}
|{{IPA|/ʔaɾe/}}
|-
|''parent''
|{{IPA|/maːtuʔa/}}
|{{IPA|/motua/}}
|{{IPA|/matua/}}
|
|{{IPA|/maatua/}}
|{{IPA|/motua/}}
|{{IPA|/motua/}}
|{{IPA|/matua/}}
|{{IPA|/makua/}}
|{{IPA|/matuʔa/}}
|{{IPA|/metua/}}
|{{IPA|/matua/}}
|{{IPA|/metua/}}
|}</div>

Certain regular correspondences can be noted between different Polynesian languages. For example, the Māori sounds {{IPA|/k/}}, {{IPA|/ɾ/}}, {{IPA|/t/}}, and {{IPA|/ŋ/}} correspond to {{IPA|/ʔ/}}, {{IPA|/l/}}, {{IPA|/k/}}, and {{IPA|/n/}} in Hawaiian. Accordingly, "man" is ''tangata'' in Māori and ''kanaka'' in Hawaiian, and Māori ''roa'' "long" corresponds to Hawaiian ''loa''. The famous Hawaiian greeting ''aloha'' corresponds to Māori ''aroha'', "love, tender emotion". Similarly, the Hawaiian word for [[kava]] is ''{{okina}}awa''.

Similarities in basic vocabulary may allow speakers from different island groups to achieve a significant degree of understanding of each other's speech. When a particular language shows unexpectedly large divergence in vocabulary, this may be the result of a [[Taboo on the dead#The taboo against naming the dead|name-avoidance taboo situation]] – see examples in [[Tahitian language#Taboo names – piꞌi|Tahitian]], where this has happened often.

Many Polynesian languages have been greatly affected by European colonization. Both Māori and Hawaiian, for example, have lost many speakers to [[English language|English]], and only since the 1990s have they resurged in popularity.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jul/28/google-disney-maori-new-zealand |title='Māori has gone mainstream': the resurgence of New Zealand's te reo language  |work=The Guardian |author=Eleanor Ainge Roy |date=28 July 2018 |access-date=22 September 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2019/06/22/452551172/the-hawaiian-language-nearly-died-a-radio-show-sparked-its-revival |title=The Hawaiian Language Nearly Died. A Radio Show Sparked Its Revival |author=Sara Kehaulani Goo |publisher=NPR |date=22 July 2019 |access-date=22 September 2020}}</ref>

==Grammatical characteristics==
===Personal pronouns===
In general, Polynesian languages have three [[Grammatical number|numbers]] for pronouns and possessives: singular, [[dual (grammatical number)|dual]] and plural. For example, in Māori: ''ia'' (he/she), ''rāua'' (they two), ''rātou'' (they 3 or more). The words ''rua'' (2) and ''toru'' (3) are still discernible in endings of the dual and plural pronouns, giving the impression that the plural was originally a [[Grammatical number#Trial|trial]] (threesome) or [[paucal]] (a few), and that an original plural has disappeared.<ref>Indeed [[Fijian language|Fijian]], a language closely related to Polynesian, has singular, dual, paucal, and plural; and even there we may see the paucal replacing the plural in generations to come, as the paucal currently can be used for a group from 3 up to as many as 10, usually with some family, workgroup or other association.</ref>
Polynesian languages have four distinctions in pronouns and possessives: first exclusive, first inclusive, second and third. For example, in Māori, the plural pronouns are: ''mātou'' (we, exc), ''tātou'' (we, inc), ''koutou'' (you), ''rātou'' (they). The difference between [[Clusivity|exclusive and inclusive]] is the treatment of the person addressed. ''Mātou'' refers to the speaker and others but not the person or persons spoken to (i.e., "I and some others, but not you"), while ''tātou'' refers to the speaker, the person or persons spoken to, and everyone else (i.e., "You and I and others").

===''a'' and ''o'' possession===
Many Polynesian languages distinguish two [[Possessive pronoun|possessives]]. The a-possessives (as they contain that letter in most cases), also known as subjective possessives, refer to possessions that must be acquired by one's own action ([[alienable possession]]). The o-possessives or objective possessives refer to possessions that are fixed to someone, unchangeable, and do not necessitate any action on one's part but upon which actions can still be performed by others ([[inalienable possession]]). Some words can take either form, often with a difference in meaning. One example is the [[Samoan language|Samoan]] word {{lang|sm|susu}}, which takes the o-possessive in {{lang|sm|lona susu}} (her breast) and the a-possessive in {{lang|sm|lana susu}} (her breastmilk). Compare also the particles used in the names of two of the books of the Māori Bible: {{lang|mi|Te Pukapuka '''a''' Heremaia}} (The Book of Jeremiah) with {{lang|mi|Te Pukapuka '''o''' Hōhua}} (The Book of Joshua); the former belongs to Jeremiah in the sense that he was the author, but the Book of Joshua was written by someone else about Joshua. The distinction between one's birth village and one's current residence village can be made similarly.

===Numerals in Polynesian languages===
Numerals:<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Numbers List |url=http://www.zompist.com/numbers.shtml |access-date=2022-09-20 |website=zompist.com}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
![[English language|English]]
!one
!two
!three
!four
!five
!six
!seven
!eight
!nine
!ten
|-
![[Proto-Polynesian]]
|*tasi
|*rua
|*tolu
|*fa
|*rima
|*ono
|*fitu
|*walu
|*hiwa
|*haŋafulu
|-
![[Tongan language|Tongan]]
|taha
|ua
|tolu
|fa
|nima
|ono
|fitu
|valu
|hiva
|hongofulu
|-
![[Niuean language|Niuean]]
|taha
|ua
|tolu
|fā
|lima
|ono
|fitu
|valu
|hiva
|hogofulu
|-
![[Samoan language|Samoan]]
|tasi
|lua
|tolu
|fa
|lima
|ono
|fitu
|valu
|iva
|sefulu
|-
![[Tokelauan language|Tokelauan]]
|tahi
|lua
|tolu
|fa
|lima
|ono
|fitu
|valu
|iva
|hefulu
|-
![[Tuvaluan language|Tuvaluan]]
|tasi
|lua
|tolu
|fa
|lima
|ono
|fitu
|valu
|iva
|agafulu
|-
![[Kapingamarangi language|Kapingamarangi]]
|dahi
|lua
|dolu
|haa
|lima
|ono
|hidu
|walu
|hiwa
|mada
|-
![[Ontong Java language|Ontong Java]]
|kahi
|lua
|kolu
|hā
|lima
|oŋo
|hiku
|valu
|sivo
|sehui
|-
![[Takuu language|Takuu]]
|tasi
|lua
|toru
|fa
|rima
|ono
|fitu
|varu
|sivo
|sinafuru
|-
![[Vaeakau-Taumako language|Pileni]]
|tasi
|rua
|toru
|fā
|lima
|ono
|fitu
|valu
|iva
|kʰaro
|-
![[Sikaiana language|Sikaiana]]
|tahi
|lua
|tolu
|hā
|lima
|ono
|hitu
|valo
|sivo
|sehui
|-
![[Marquesan language|Marquesan]]
|e tahi
|e úa
|e toú
|e fa
|e íma
|e ono
|e fitu
|e vaú
|e iva
|ónohuú
|-
![[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]]
|‘e-kahi
|‘e-lua
|‘e-kolu
|‘e-hā
|‘e-lima
|‘e-ono
|‘e-hiku
|‘e-walu
|‘e-iwa
|‘umi
|-
![[Mangareva language|Mangareva]]
|tahi
|rua
|toru
|ha
|rima
|ono
|hitu
|varu
|iva
|rogouru
|-
![[Rapa Nui language|Rapa Nui]]
|tahi
|rua
|toru
|ha
|rima
|ono
|hitu
|vaʼu
|iva
|ʼahuru
|-
![[Māori language|Maori]]
|tahi
|rua
|toru
|whā
|rima
|ono
|whitu
|waru
|iwa
|tekau (also ngahuru)
|-
![[Tahitian language|Tahitian]]
|tahi
|piti
|toru
|maha
|pae
|ōno
|hitu
|vaʼu
|iva
|hōeʼahuru
|-
![[Cook Islands Māori|Rarotongan]]
|taʼi
|rua
|toru
|ā
|rima
|ono
|ʼitu
|varu
|iva
|ngaʼuru
|-
![[Tuamotuan language|Tuamotuan]]
|tahi
|rua
|toru
|fā
|rima
|ono
|hitu
|varu
|iva
|rongoʼuru
|-
![[Penrhyn language|Penrhyn]]
|tahi
|lua
|tolu
|hā
|lima
|ono
|hitu
|valu
|iva
|tahi-ngahulu
|-
![[Moriori language|Moriori]]
|tehi
|teru
|toru
|tewha
|terima
|teono
|tewhitu
|tewaru
|teiwa
|meangauru
|-
![[Anuta language|Anuta]]
|tai
|rua
|toru
|paa
|nima
|ono
|pitu
|varu
|iva
|puangapuru
|-
![[Emae language|Emae]]
|tasi
|rua
|toru
|fa
|rima
|ono
|fitu
|βaru
|siβa
|ŋafuru
|-
![[Futuna-Aniwa language|Futuna-Aniwa]]
|tasi
|rua
|toru
|fa
|rima
|ono
|fitu
|varo
|iva
|tagafuru
|-
![[Mele-Fila language|Mele]]
|tasi
|rua
|toru
|fa
|rima
|ono
|fitu
|βaru
|siβa
|siŋafuru
|-
![[Nanumea]]
|tahi
|lua
|tolu
|fā
|lima
|ono
|fitu
|valu
|iva
|toa
|-
![[Nukuoro language|Nukuoro]]
|dahi
|ka-lua
|ka-dolu
|ka-haa
|ka-lima
|ka-ono
|ka-hidu
|ka-valu
|ka-siva
|ka-hulu
|-
![[Pukapukan language|Pukapuka]]
|tayi
|lua
|tolu
|wa
|lima
|ono
|witu
|valu
|iva
|laugaulu
|-
![[Rennellese language|Rennellese]]
|tahi
|ŋgua
|toŋgu
|hā
|ŋgima
|ono
|hitu
|baŋgu
|iba
|katoa
|-
![[Tikopia language|Tikopia]]
|tasi
|rua
|toru
|fa
|rima
|ono
|fitu
|varu
|siva
|fuaŋafuru
|-
![[Wallisian language|Wallisian]]
|tahi
|lua
|tolu
|fā
|nima
|ono
|fitu
|valu
|hiva
|hogofulu
|-
![[West Uvean language|West Uvea]]
|tahi
|ƚua
|toƚu
|fa
|lima
|tahia-tupu
|luaona-tupu
|toluona-tupu
|faona-tupu
|limaona-tupu
|}

The words for 1,000 and 10,000 in these languages notably shifted between eastern and western branches: those in Tongic and Samoic groups used {{Wikt-lang|to|afe}} for 1,000 and {{Wikt-lang|to|mano}} for 10,000; while Marquesic languages like Tahitian, Māori and Hawaiian use ''mano'' and ''tini'' ~ ''kini'' respectively.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Overmann |first=Karenleigh A. |title=Counting “elevens” and why nine and two make twenty: The material roots of Polynesian numbers |journal=Journal of Mathematics and Culture |date=Jun 2021 |volume=15 |issue=3 |page=5-6}}</ref>

==Orthography==
Written Polynesian languages use orthography based on [[Latin script]]. Most Polynesian languages have five [[Vowel#Articulation|vowel qualities]], corresponding roughly to those written ''i, e, a, o, u'' in classical [[Latin]]. However, orthographic conventions for [[phoneme]]s that are not easily encoded in standard Latin script had to develop over time. Influenced by the traditions of orthographies of languages they were familiar with, the missionaries who first developed orthographies for unwritten Polynesian languages did not explicitly mark phonemic vowel length or the [[glottal stop]]. By the time that [[linguists]] trained in more modern methods made their way to the Pacific, at least for the major languages, the [[Bible]] was already printed according to the orthographic system developed by the missionaries, and the people had learned to read and write without marking vowel length or the [[glottal stop]].

This situation persists in many languages. Despite efforts at reform by local academies, the general conservative resistance to orthographic change has led to varying results in Polynesian languages, and several writing variants co-exist. The most common method, however, uses a [[Macron (diacritic)|macron]] to indicate a long vowel, while a vowel without that diacritical mark is short, for example, '''ā''' versus '''a'''.  Sometimes, a long vowel is instead written double, e.g. ''Maaori''.

The [[glottal stop]] (not present in all Polynesian languages, but, where present, one of the most common [[consonants]]) is indicated by an [[apostrophe]], for example, '''<nowiki/>'a''' versus '''a'''.  Hawaiʻian uses the '''[[ʻokina]]''', also called by [[ʻokina#Names|several other names]], a [[Unicase|unicameral]] [[consonant]] letter used within the [[Latin script]] to mark the [[phoneme|phonemic]] [[glottal stop]]. It is also used in many other Polynesian languages, each of which has its own name for the character. Apart from the ʻokina or the somewhat similar Tahitian ʻeta, a common method is to change the simple apostrophe for a curly one, taking a normal apostrophe for the elision and the inverted comma for the [[glottal stop]]. The latter method has come into common use in Polynesian languages.

==See also==
*[[Proto-Polynesian language]] – the reconstructed ancestral language from which modern Polynesian languages are derived. 
*[[ʻOkina]] – a glyph shaped like (but distinct from) an apostrophe: used to represent the glottal-stop consonant in some Polynesian Latin-based scripts.
*[[Rongorongo]] – the undeciphered script of [[Easter Island]] ([[Rapanui]]).
*[[List of English words of Polynesian origin]]
{{Commons category|Languages of Polynesia}}

==Notes and references==
===Notes===
{{Reflist}}

===Further reading===
* {{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/maoripolynesian01treggoog|title=The Maori-Polynesian comparative dictionary|author=Edward Tregear|year=1891|publisher=Lyon and Blair|pages=[https://archive.org/details/maoripolynesian01treggoog/page/n12 675]|access-date=2011-07-21}}
* {{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/maoripolynesian01treggoog|title=The Maori-Polynesian Comparative Dictionary|author=Edward Tregear|year=1891
|publisher=Lyon and Blair}} at archive.org.
* {{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_x7syAQAAIAAJ|title=A Paumotuan dictionary with Polynesian comparatives|author=Edward Tregear|year=1895|publisher=Whitcombe & Tombs Limited|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_x7syAQAAIAAJ/page/n67 76]|access-date=2011-07-21}}

===Bibliography===
* {{cite book |last1=Charpentier |first1=Jean-Michel |first2=Alexandre |last2=François |year=2015 |title=Atlas linguistique de Polynésie française – Linguistic Atlas of French Polynesia |language=fr, en |publisher=Mouton de Gruyter & Université de la Polynésie française |isbn=978-3-11-026035-9 |url=http://alex.francois.free.fr/AF-Atlas-blurbs_e.htm }}
* [[Geoffrey Irwin|Irwin, Geoffrey]] (1992). ''The Prehistoric Exploration and Colonisation of the Pacific''. Cambridge: [[Cambridge University Press]].
* Krupa V. (1975–1982). ''Polynesian Languages'', [[Routledge and Kegan Paul]]
* Lynch, J. (1998). ''Pacific Languages: an Introduction''. [[University of Hawaiʻi Press|University of Hawai'i Press]].
* Lynch, John, Malcolm Ross & Terry Crowley (2002). ''The Oceanic languages''. Richmond, Surrey: [[Curzon Press]].
* Marck, Jeff (2000), ''Topics in Polynesian languages and culture history''. Canberra: [[Pacific Linguistics]].
*Silva, Diego B (2019). ''[https://www.scielo.br/j/alfa/a/YPntRnVWDW5F8P8PYfJGPKd/?lang=en Language policy in Oceania]''. Alfa, Rev. Linguíst 63 (2).

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{{Eastern Malayo-Polynesian languages}}
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[[Category:Polynesian languages| ]]
[[Category:Central Pacific languages]]