The question of how long the Tokelauan language can survive is being explored by John Middleton - a doctoral candidate at Auckland University's School of Cultures, Languages and Linguistics.
He talks to Jesse about the current situation where more Tokelauans reside in New Zealand than on the tiny pacific atolls and what that means for the future of their language.
John has also written a piece for Newsroom, which you can read here.
This week is Tokelau Language Week in New Zealand.
