ICHCAP

The Pohnpei State Historic Preservation Office and NGO Pasifika Renaissance launched a new radio program, “Nahlikend En Leng,” in Pohnpei on 25 April. This is the second collaborative project of the two organizations, as we began to film Pohnpeian elders’ stories together to share on YouTube (https://goo.gl/gmoiEo) from last year.

This weekly program is aired on V6AH at 8 PM every day. We read aloud Pohnpeian legends, tales, and historical accounts in the Pohnpeian language and broadcast Pohnpeian elders’ stories recorded during our video documentation project. The name of the program, “Nahlikend En Leng,” is the honorific title of paret (in Pohnpeian) or brown noddy tern (Anous stolidus). The bird bears news, both good and bad, such as the loss of a loved one or other important happenings.

Many older Pohnpeians have fond childhood memories of listening to stories told by elderly relatives before bed. This practice, however, has been largely lost in Pohnpei due to the spread of new media, such as videos and games and the decline of the younger generation’s interest in traditional culture.

In Pohnpei, the radio (V6AH) is currently the only media covering the whole island of Pohnpei and its outer islands. This program aims to pass down important Pohnpeian stories to the younger generation and promote the importance of cultural heritage. We hope the program will spark conversations about their culture and history during family gatherings and sakau sessions.

If you are not in Pohnpei, you can listen our programs on YouTube (https://goo.gl/ykK9CZ). We would like to thank the Pohnpeian elders, COM-FSM Library, Department of Education, and Pohnpei Public Broadcasting Corporation (V6AH) for their assistance. If you like to contribute stories to our radio program and video documentation project, please phone us at +691-320-2652.

The original article is available here.

Sample Video from the Video Documentation Project

While the video doesn't have hard coded subtitles, you can activate auto-generated subtitles by going to the settings gear in the bottom-right of the video controller while the video is playing and selecting "English (auto-generate)."