Don't be confused: the country that announced the opening of an embassy in Jerusalem has changed its name
Nauru's President David Adeang announced an official change in the spelling of the country's name from Nauru to Naoero, aligning with the indigenous pronunciation. The Latin spelling will change from Nauru to Naoero, the international code from NRU to NRO, and its people will be called Dei-Naoero. Nauru, a loyal ally of Israel, announced last month the opening of an embassy in Jerusalem. The change was approved by lawmakers in two rounds of voting, without a referendum. The country, with 12,000 residents, faces a high risk from rising sea levels.
Nauru's President David Adeang announced today (Monday) an official change in the spelling of the country's name from Nauru to Naoero, in a way that better suits the pronunciation of the name by the indigenous population of the island. According to the decision, adopted by the local legislature, the spelling will change in Latin letters from Nauru to Naoero. In addition, the country's international code will change from NRU to NRO, and its people will be called Dei-Naoero instead of Nauruan. The new name, known abroad as noo-roh, is pronounced noh-ah-roh. Nauru is considered one of Israel's most loyal allies in the world, with an impressive record of voting in favor of the Jewish state at the UN. Last month, Nauru announced it would open an embassy in Jerusalem after being represented for years by a honorary consul in Israel. "The move returns the remote island nation in the South Pacific to its traditional name," read a statement published on the government's Facebook account. The country was known worldwide as Nauru only because its local name was difficult for foreigners to pronounce and was a matter of convenience rather than choice, according to a previous government statement. "This proposed change seeks to more faithfully honor our nation's heritage, language, and identity," President David Adeang said when he proposed the move to parliament in January. The proposed constitutional amendment was approved by lawmakers in the two required rounds of voting, although it was not immediately clear if the document was officially amended. With 12,000 residents, it is the third smallest country in the world by population, after Tuvalu and Vatican City. The tiny limestone atoll, made of coral, was settled by Germany and later administered by Australia before becoming an independent republic in 1968. Nauru has faced a troubled economic history, with phosphate mining creating immense wealth on the island in the 1970s before the industry collapsed, bringing it to the brink of economic ruin in the 1990s. Now, the island is one of the highest-risk places in the world from rising sea levels due to climate warming, prompting the government to seek foreign investment through a citizenship-by-investment program designed to fund the movement of people and infrastructure away from the expanding ocean. The name change signaled "the beginning of renewed national pride," Adeang said in his latest message. When his government recently voted for the move in May, the president announced a referendum to approve it. The government said in a statement last week that after "extensive discussions," lawmakers decided there was no need for a public vote. "While a referendum is meant to determine the will of the people, the name Naoero was never lost, but awaits full adoption," the statement read. The nickname "is already the identity of the people, is on the state's emblem, and it is a community; and more importantly, it is permitted under the constitution," it added. The move makes the country the latest to signal a shift away from colonial past by changing its name. The small African kingdom of Eswatini reverted to its name from Swaziland in 2018. Other countries have sought the change as a kind of rebranding, as Turkey did when Ankara asked the UN in 2022 to change the Latin spelling of its name, as it has long been called in the Turkish language.