Nyelayu

Nyâlayu, or Yâlayu, is a Kanak language of the Extreme Northern New Caledonian group, spoken at the northern tip of Grande Terre and on the outlying Belep islands. It descends, with the other Kanak languages, from the Proto-Oceanic of Lapita seafarers who settled New Caledonia around 1000 BCE.

Nyâlayu has two dialects that are not mutually intelligible: Pooc, also called Haat, spoken on the Belep islands north of the main island, and Puma, or Paak, spoken on the northern coast around Poum in the west and Pouébo and Balade in the east.