Hiri Motu

Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea).

Hiri Motu
Police Motu
RegionPapua New Guinea
Native speakers
(Very few cited 1992)
100,000 L2 speakers (2021)
Austronesian
  • Malayo-Polynesian
    • Oceanic
      • Western Oceanic
        • Papuan Tip
          • Central
            • Sinagoro–Keapar
              • Motu
                • Hiri Motu
Writing system
Latin script
Official status
Official language in
Papua New Guinea
Language codes
ISO 639-1ho
ISO 639-2hmo
ISO 639-3hmo
Glottologhiri1237

It is a simplified version of Motu, from the Austronesian language family. Although it is strictly neither a pidgin nor a creole, it possesses some features from both language types. Phonological and grammatical differences make Hiri Motu not mutually intelligible with Motu. The languages are lexically very similar, and retain a common, albeit simplified, Austronesian syntactical basis. It has also been influenced to some degree by Tok Pisin.

Even in the areas where it was once well established as a lingua franca, the use of Hiri Motu has been declining in favour of Tok Pisin and English for many years. The language has some statutory recognition.

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