Overcoming Tiki Pop: Polynesian Translingual Literature Against Cultural Exoticization

This study analyzes Tiki Pop as a cultural phenomenon of the 20th century and provides insight into how Polynesian translingual literature helps eliminate stereotypes imposed on indigenous cultures in the region. The author traces the history of Tiki Pop, from its inception in the 1930s to its decline at the turn of the century, and argues that this phenomenon was a byproduct of colonial times that affected the way Western audiences perceive Polynesia. This exoticizing view of the region is then contrasted to the way it is presented in Polynesian translingual literature. The author then delineates several linguistic devices that are utilized by indigenous ambilingual authors in order to outline their identity and combat stereotypical conceptualization of local cultures.