Papua New Guinea Language Toktok

Papua New Guinea Language Toktok

What's it like to live in a country with more than 830 different languages? Where not many people speak only one language and most of us use two or three or four languages every day? Where most of us use Pidgin English to talk to each other in? The country is Papua New Guinea. I'm Professor Craig Volker and I'm lucky enough to live in Papua New Guinea. Together on this podcast, every couple weeks we'll spend five or ten minutes looking at language here ⏤ local languages, our pidgin languages, and how we use (or don’t use) English. And sometimes even we'll even go beyond our borders.

Episodes

January 15, 2025 10 mins

Have you ever been confused by the different ways the same word is spelled (or spelt)? Like color and colour? Or center and centre? Listen and find out why this happens.


To read the article this episode was based on, go to https://www.thenational.com.pg/should-i-write-colour-or-color/

Mark as Played

One of the reasons so few Papua New Guineans work as United Nations public servants is that they do not have the necessary language skills. Listen and find out which languages you need to be able to speak to work at the UN.


To read the article this episode was based on, go to: https://www.thenational.com.pg/what-languages-do-i-need-to-work-at-the-un/

Mark as Played

Papua New Guinea is famous for being a small country with more languages than any other country? But why does it have so many? Listen and find out!


To read the article this episode was based on, go to https://www.thenational.com.pg/why-does-png-have-so-many-languages/




Mark as Played

Phonics has become a buzzword in teaching children to read English, but how does it work for Papua New Guineans? English is a second language here and children usually come to school not knowing how to speak English. Can phonics help them learn to speak the language they will use at school? Listen and see what you think!


To read the article this episode was based on, go to https://www.thenational.com.pg/how-does-phonics-work-f...

Mark as Played

Have you ever heard PNG languages described as "primitive"? Do you think English is more developed than your language? Before you answer, listen to this!


To read the article this episode was based on, go to: https://www.thenational.com.pg/how-primitive-are-png-languages/

Mark as Played

Indonesia is Papua New Guinea's closest neighbour, but do you know what languages are spoken on the other side of the border? And how many? Listen and find out!


To read the article this episode was based on, go to https://www.thenational.com.pg/what-is-the-language-situation-in-indonesia/

Mark as Played

English is a terrible language for spelling and many students have a lot of difficulty in learning how to spell correctly. But English is the language of education in Papua New Guinea and we have to learn how to spell it correctly. What's a teacher to do?


To read the article this episode was based on, go to https://www.thenational.com.pg/how-can-i-help-my-students-with-spelling-and-writing-difficulties/

Mark as Played

For many centuries no one spoke Hebrew as a home language. It was known only through books and dictionaries. But now it is once again the home language of millions of people. How did this happen and what lessons are there for Papua New Guinea?


To read the article this episode was based on, go to https://www.thenational.com.pg/how-hebrew-was-revived/

Mark as Played

What does it mean we say two languages are related? How can we find out if two languages are or are not related? Listen and find out!


To read the article this episode was based on, go to https://www.thenational.com.pg/how-do-we-know-if-two-languages-are-related/

Mark as Played

Does your language have a dictionary? If it doesn't, do you want to know how to make one?


To read the article this was based on, go to https://www.thenational.com.pg/can-make-dictionary-language/


Mark as Played
August 23, 2024 1 min

What's it like to live in a country with more than 830 different languages? Where not many people speak only one language and most of us use two or three or four languages every day? Where most of us use Pidgin English to talk to each other in?

 

The country is Papua New Guinea.

 

I'm Professor Craig Volker and I'm lucky enough to live in Papua New Guinea. Together on this podcast, every couple weeks we'll spend fi...

Mark as Played

What is the International Decade of Indigenous Languages and why is it relevant to Papua New Guinea?


https://www.thenational.com.pg/decade-of-indigenous-languages/


Mark as Played
Mark as Played

Popular Podcasts

    If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.

    Dateline NBC

    Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com

    The Breakfast Club

    The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!

    The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show

    The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.

    Crime Junkie

    Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by Audiochuck Media Company.

Advertise With Us
Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.