Māori Language Week

Elliot Briar

| '54 Grad | Ollivander's Asst. |
 
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Kia Ora!

I'm a bit late to the party but it's Maori Language Week (Te wiki o te reo Maori) in New Zealand this week, which is a celebration of the indiginous language of Aotearoa, te reo Maori.

I thought it might be nice to share a little reo with HNZ users as my own celebration and of course invite any other kiwis (or non-kiwis looking to learn) to add their own!

To start, here's some real basics. Pretty much every New Zealander knows these words and they're used in casual conversation if you've ever like to use it in your RPs.
Disclaimer: I am learning te reo Maori but obviously I am not a fluent speaker. If anyone spots a mistake or something that needs clarification/rephrasing, lemme know!

Kia Ora - directly translated as "be well" or "have life", Kia Ora is your standard "Hello" or casual greeting in te reo. Can also be used to express gratitude (thank you) or just acknowledgement.
Aotearoa - The te reo word for New Zealand, used interchangeably. In fact, there's a push right now to officially change the country name to Aotearoa that you should check out and sign! (Non-kiwis can also sign!)
Haere Mai - Welcome or "come here". Another common greeting, I hear teachers use this a lot.
Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa - Greetings, greetings, greetings one and all. A more formal greeting for a group of more than 3 people. Used commonly in speeches, you may have spotted a few students or professors using this one already.
Kai - Means "food". Commonly used by kiwis interchangeably with food/meal (Let's get you some kai).
Ka Pai - Ka Pai means "good"! Fairly self explanatory, but often used as an exclamation like "well done".
Kia Kaha - Literally translated as "be strong". A phrase of encouragement and solidarity (Kia Kaha, Hufflepuff, don't give up!).
Whānau - Means "family/extended family".
Whare - Means house or home
Aroha - Love ❤️

Okay, stopping myself there, I'm sure there's tonnes of reo that folks can add if they want (or ask for if you're curious!). Also check out sites like maorilanguage.net for things like a list of greetings or look up some words on the Maori Dictionary if you want to learn more.

Kia kaha te reo Māori!
 

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