Naoero formally requested a change to its international identifier, shifting its name at the United Nations to Naoero to reflect its indigenous heritage and reject colonial-era naming conventions. According to a speech delivered by President David Adeang at the UN General Assembly in New York, the Pacific island nation updated its official English-facing designation to align with the word its citizens use among themselves.
“There are moments in the life of a nation when its people are called to remember who they have always been,” Adeang told world leaders at the UN headquarters. “This is a moment así for us.” The island’s international country code shifts from NRU to NRO, and its demonym updates from Nauruan to naoero.
Restoring Indigenous Orthography After Decades of Colonial Rule
Located in the South Pacific with a land area of 20 square kilometers (8 square miles) and a population of approximately 12,000, Naoero gained independence in 1968 following a prolonged period of shared colonial administration by the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, and Germany. Adeang noted that foreign administrations adopted “Nauru” because outsiders found the indigenous pronunciation difficult to articulate.
“During many years, the world knew our country as Nauru,” Adeang stated during his UN address. “Nauru is how it sounded to those who found it difficult to say, and the world kept it. But it is not the name that our people used among each other.” The administration first signaled intentions to codify the change in February before officially announcing the transition in August.
The government maintains that the modification is an affirmation of historical identity rather than an outright break from the past. “We do not take this decision to erase our past. We take it because we honor it,” Adeang said. “That name carries the memory of our ancestors, our language, and our identity. It has been there all the time. Never lost, never absent. Today, we restore Naoero.”
Global Precedents in National Renaming and De-escalating Colonial Labels
The decision by Naoero places the Pacific nation among a long line of sovereign states that have altered or adjusted their international designations during the 20th and 21st centuries to shed colonial markers, foster ethnic unity, or correct foreign linguistic adaptations. In 2018, Eswatini formally dropped its designation of Swaziland. Similar geopolitical adjustments include Dahomey becoming Benin in 1975, Rhodesia transforming into Zimbabwe in 1980, and Siam adopting Thailand in 1939.
Other nations have recalibrated their official names at the United Nations to eliminate confusion in foreign languages. In 2022, Turkey requested that the international community utilize the spelling Turkiye in global forums to prevent linguistic overlap with the English word for the bird. Historical shifts also include Persia becoming Iran, Burma transitioning to Myanmar, Upper Volta updating to Burkina Faso, the Gold Coast becoming Ghana, and Ceylon transforming into Sri Lanka.
Following his remarks on national heritage, Adeang used his remaining time at the General Assembly podium to address contemporary vulnerabilities facing the island, including sea-level rise, economic stability, and international representation.
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