Mere Taito has made history by completing what is believed to be the world’s first PhD focused entirely on Rotuman literature.
Her groundbreaking thesis was recently awarded the Otago University in Dunedin, New Zealand.
Her thesis explores early Rotuman literary contributions and the power of storytelling to preserve identity.
“I am extremely humbled, overwhelmed, very grateful, and at the same time, mind blown,” Mere said in an article published by Otago University.
“I did not set out to be the first of anything.”
Mere’s heritage traces back to the Rotuman districts of Malha’a and Noa’tau, though she was born in Fiji.
In 2007, she migrated to New Zealand.
“I had no inkling that this move to New Zealand would open so many doors for me,” she said.
“It has been 18 remarkable years of personal, creative and scholarly growth.”
Her thesis re-centres the work of early Rotuman writers such as Emosi Rima, Mesulame Titifanua, and Fuata Taito, whose voices shaped early Rotuman narratives in both written and oral traditions.
“I am most proud that this research has sharpened and re-focused our attention on earlier writers and suggested creative ways to engage with these and other historical texts,” she said.
“To be able to offer my people a scholarly and creative gift that is of an exceptional standard makes me teary just thinking of this.”