gdevreal, a prodigious commentator at a very lively forum called Fiji Board Exiles argues that if the committee wants to change the name of Fiji's inhabitants, it should find a title that is not already in use.
Pick something new instead of robbing it from someone else. There is no need to steal from one group to satisfy another. Pick a word that does not already have a meaning so you can respect Fijians right to what they have and what in addition is guaranteed to them under the Constitution by all the Peoples of Fiji.
Are People of all races called Indians in India? Japanese in Japan?
"Fiji citizen" is good enough as a common name…
In another post at the same forum, real jack had a historical take on then term "Fijian," which he claims is a "British Colonial invention."
…when Vijay Singh plays on the international golf circuit, everybody makes a point about him being Fijian - the media always underline that like its a badge of honour - and they underscore it even in TV reports with phrases like "Fijian Vijay Singh today won the US Masters……" as if we don't already know he is Fijian ! lol.
this argument about the word "Fijian" won't put bread and butter on the table - nor does it make a difference - that word is not our itaukei identity anyway - its a British word that came in with the Brits…
From Alohabula1:
If we were to take it on American standards then it would be Fijian African and Fijian Indian. Would the recent people from Fiji who have migrated to the US then be American Fijians and further defined to American Fijian Indians but NOT American Indians because they use to be the Red ones? I am sooo confused. You gotta love it, especially if we all supposedly originated out of Africa, then would I be an African, European, Hawaiian American???Fijian??? because I now live here? Or do we base it on Home is where the heart is? Or where we presently live, or where our parents were born, or where we were born or where we were raised. I am still confused.
