Ethnologue.com home

Ethnologue: Languages of the World
16th edition

Ethnologue: Languages of the World
US$ 100.00
Add to cart

Preview print edition

Most Recent
SIL Publications
Reduced Price SIL Publications


ABOUT SSL CERTIFICATES
Ethnologue > Web version > Country index > Pacific > Cook Islands

Languages of Cook Islands

See language map.
Cook Islands. 14,000. National or official language: English. New Zealand self-governing territory. 15 islands including Danger, Manahiki, Rakahanga, Penrhyn (Tongareva), Pukapuka islands. Literacy rate: 92%–94%. Immigrant languages: Niue (200). The number of individual languages listed for Cook Islands is 5. Of those, all are living languages.
English

[eng] 1,000 in Cook Islands (Crystal 2005).  Classification: Indo-European, Germanic, West, English 
More information.

Penrhyn

[pnh] 600 (Wurm and Hattori 1981). Northern Cook Islands, Penrhyn Island. Alternate names: Mangarongaro, Penrhynese, Tongareva.  Dialects: Almost intelligible with Rarotongan [rar].  Classification: Austronesian, Malayo-Polynesian, Central-Eastern, Eastern Malayo-Polynesian, Oceanic, Central-Eastern Oceanic, Remote Oceanic, Central Pacific, East Fijian-Polynesian, Polynesian, Nuclear, East, Central, Tahitic 
More information.

Pukapuka

[pkp] 840 in Cook Islands (1997). Population total all countries: 2,030. Ethnic population: 1,200 (1997). Pukapuka and Nasau islands, northern Cook Islands; some in Rarotonga. Also in Australia, New Zealand. Alternate names: Bukabukan, Pukapukan.  Dialects: Not intelligible with Rarotongan [rar] or other Cook Islands languages. Related to Samoan [smo].  Classification: Austronesian, Malayo-Polynesian, Central-Eastern, Eastern Malayo-Polynesian, Oceanic, Central-Eastern Oceanic, Remote Oceanic, Central Pacific, East Fijian-Polynesian, Polynesian, Nuclear, Samoic-Outlier, Pukapuka 
More information.

Rakahanga-Manihiki

[rkh] 2,500 in Cook Islands (Wurm and Hattori 1981). Population total all countries: 5,000. Northern Cook Islands, Rakahanga and Manihiki islands. Also in New Zealand. Alternate names: Manihiki-Rakahanga.  Dialects: Limited intelligibility with Rarotongan [rar].  Classification: Austronesian, Malayo-Polynesian, Central-Eastern, Eastern Malayo-Polynesian, Oceanic, Central-Eastern Oceanic, Remote Oceanic, Central Pacific, East Fijian-Polynesian, Polynesian, Nuclear, East, Central, Tahitic 
More information.

Rarotongan

[rar] 7,300 in Cook Islands (2008). Population total all countries: 33,220. 13 Cook Islands. Also in French Polynesia, New Zealand, United States. Alternate names: Cook Island, Cook Islands Maori, Kuki Airani, Maori, Rarotongan-Mangaian.  Dialects: Mitiaro, Mauke, Atiu, Mangaia, Rarotonga, Aitutaki. Lexical similarity: 83% with Tuamotuan [pmt], 79% with Hawaiian [haw], 75% with Mangareva [mrv], 73% with Marquesan [mrq].  Classification: Austronesian, Malayo-Polynesian, Central-Eastern, Eastern Malayo-Polynesian, Oceanic, Central-Eastern Oceanic, Remote Oceanic, Central Pacific, East Fijian-Polynesian, Polynesian, Nuclear, East, Central, Tahitic 
More information.