International Austronesian Languages Revitalization Forum

The Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association co-hosted the GCTF International Austronesian Languages Revitalization Forum.

The Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association co-hosted the GCTF International Austronesian Languages Revitalization Forum in Palau with the American Institute in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Council of Indigenous Peoples. On September 29th, the opening ceremony was held at the Ngarachamayong Culture Center in Palau. Mr. Tadataka Ikeda, Director of the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association, attended in place of Chief Representative Mikio Numata and read an address on his behalf. He highlighted the cooperative relationships developed over the years between Japan and the Pacific countries where Austronesian languages are spoken. He expressed the hope that this forum would help facilitate academic exchanges between Japan and Austronesian countries on matters such as cultural anthropology. His full address was as follows.


Minister Icyang of the Council of Indigenous Peoples,
Minister Hon. Baklai Temengil of Community and Cultural Affairs ,
Ambassador Chow,
Ambassador Hyatt,
Distinguished guests, and friends,

Good Morning.

It is a great honor for the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association to co-host this GCTF International Austronesian Languages Revitalization Forum with the American Institute in Taiwan, Council of Indigenous Peoples and Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I am delighted to have the opportunity to read this this address on behalf of Mr. Mikio Numata, Chief Representative of Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association Taipei Office.

This is the sixth occasion on which the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association has co-hosted a workshop since joining the GCTF this year. It is the first workshop to take place outside Taiwan, and we are delighted to be co-hosting this event in the same way as before. The Global Cooperation and Trading Framework provides an innovative platform for discussing common agendas on a cross-regional basis. We are committed to facilitating the continued development of this framework to the best of our ability.

The theme of this workshop is International Austronesian Language Revitalization. It is both surprising and extremely interesting that a single common language system exists in the Indo-Pacific islands despite the fact that they are separated by water. This is a meaningful initiative, bringing together regional experts on the Austronesian language system exploring their roots and forging cooperative ties with each other on a common theme.

Although it is not yet proved, some experts say that Japanese plural forms and indeed some Japanese words originate from the Austronesian languages. We will have to wait for further proof in this respect, however, but in future we may well come to understand that Austronesian languages have had a greater influence on the Japanese language than we currently appreciate.

Japan has a close relationship with the Indo-Pacific region where Austronesian languages are spoken and has provided a wide range of assistance over the years. The Japanese government has hosted the Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting every three years since 1997. The eighth meeting took place last May in Fukushima, the location of the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011. Prime Minister Abe announced his vision for a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” in August 2016. Furthermore, this August, Mr. Taro Kono, then Foreign Minister, visited several Pacific Islands countries for the first time in 32 years. That was also the first visit to Palau by a Japanese Foreign Minister.

Foreign Minister Kono gave a policy speech in Fiji and called on all friends of the Pacific Islands region to work together for a better future — a future that is “Active, Opportunity-filled and Innovative.” The first letters of these three keywords spell out the word A-O-I. AOI means blue in Japanese and evokes the blue skies and the blue ocean of the Pacific Islands.

Foreign Minister Kono announced a specific commitment to 1) Promoting stability and safety 2) Supporting resilient and sustainable development and 3) Revitalizing person-to-person interactions. In future, I hope this workshop will spur the development of exchanges with Palau and other island nations in academic fields such as cultural anthropology.

I would like to close these opening remarks by extending my wishes for the success of this workshop.

Thank you for your attention.