Nauru Officially Renamed Naoero

The Pacific Island country of Nauru has officially changed its name to the Republic of Naoero, matching the spelling and pronunciation in the national language. The move returns the remote South Pacific island nation to its traditional name, as stated by President David Adeang.

The change was announced through a statement posted on the government's Facebook account. According to an earlier government statement, Nauru became known internationally only because its local name was difficult for foreigners to pronounce and was a matter of convenience rather than choice. The country's international code will now change from NRU to NRO, and its people will be known as dei-Naoero instead of Nauruan.

President Adeang proposed the move in January, stating that it seeks to more faithfully honor the nation's heritage, language, and identity. The suggested constitutional amendment has been endorsed by lawmakers in two rounds of voting, though it was not immediately clear if the document had been formally amended. With 12,000 residents, Nauru is the world's third-smallest country by population size, after Tuvalu and Vatican City.

The tiny coral limestone atoll has faced tumultuous circumstances in its history. Phosphate mining created huge wealth on the island in the 1970s before the industry collapsed, bringing Nauru to the brink of economic ruin in the 1990s. Now, the country is one of the world's most at risk from rising seas due to climate change. The government has sought overseas investment through a paid citizenship program intended to fund the movement of people and infrastructure away from the encroaching ocean.

The name change indicates 'the beginning of renewed national pride,' Adeang said in his latest announcement. When his government last voted for the move in May, the president announced a referendum to confirm it. However, after extensive discussions, lawmakers decided that a public vote wasn't needed. The designation is already on the national coat of arms and spoken in the community.

The move makes Nauru the latest country to signal a shift away from its colonial past by changing its name. Similar changes have been made by Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) and Turkey, which asked the UN to begin calling it Türkiye. The government is seeking international recognition of the new name, with the United Nations website already recording Nauru as Naoero.