{"id":2338,"date":"2014-08-01T09:00:28","date_gmt":"2014-08-01T09:00:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.listenandlearn.org\/blog\/?p=2338"},"modified":"2014-07-31T20:49:54","modified_gmt":"2014-07-31T20:49:54","slug":"mind-your-own-language-the-fall-and-rise-of-maori-te-reo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.listenandlearn.org\/blog\/mind-your-own-language-the-fall-and-rise-of-maori-te-reo\/","title":{"rendered":"Mind Your Own Language \u2013 The Fall And Rise Of Maori Te Reo"},"content":{"rendered":"

Any rugby fans around the world will know of the Haka<\/a>, royal watchers will have seen a Hongi<\/a>, and most Brits will have heard the greeting Kia Ora (or drunk the juice of the same name) \u2013 and here in New Zealand (Aotearoa), we\u2019re proud that the indigenous M\u0101ori language (Te Reo) is still going strong\u2026or is it?<\/p>\n

\"Picture<\/a><\/p>\n

M\u0101ori 101<\/b><\/h3>\n

Following European colonisation in 1840 the M\u0101ori language first showed signs of disappearing at the turn of the 20th century as schools were introduced and children were taught in English. Urban migration in the mid 20th century saw many M\u0101ori head to the towns for work, and the English language was key to their success and social standing.<\/p>\n

The 1970s saw a change in attitude as M\u0101ori worried that their language was heading the way of the dodo, and initiatives and programmes were introduced to revitalise Te Reo. This included the introduction of a M\u0101ori TV channel and M\u0101ori language schools, and in 1987 the M\u0101ori Language Act made Te Reo an official language of New Zealand.<\/p>\n

Today, in a country of five million people and 20 million sheep, 690,300 New Zealanders identify as M\u0101ori, and of that group 21% can speak M\u0101ori (Te Reo) fluently.<\/p>\n

Indigenous Lingos<\/b><\/h3>\n

Although this number seems quite low, compared with other colonised societies, the indigenous language of Aotearoa (New Zealand) is relatively strong, and has managed to avoid linguicide (the death of a language) unlike many of its aboriginal counterparts.<\/p>\n

Of the approximately 6,809 living languages that exist today only 100,000 people can speak 90% of them, some by just one individual, and it\u2019s estimated that 6,100 of those languages are heading for extinction as the native speakers become extinct themselves.<\/p>\n

The Politics of Te Reo<\/b><\/h3>\n

Of course the key to keeping a language going also relies heavily on education, and this year 4% of non-M\u0101ori secondary school students are learning Te Reo \u2013 which is a small improvement on the 3% of previous years.<\/p>\n

With an election happening in September, M\u0101ori language is a popular topic, with the co-leader of the M\u0101ori Party, Pita Sharples, calling for Te Reo to be available in all schools but stopped short of saying it should be compulsory.<\/p>\n

Similarly, the Labour Party announced their Te Reo campaign, reflecting Sharples\u2019 views, and adding that policy needed to be introduced to encourage the use of the M\u0101ori language in schools.<\/p>\n

Currently, the Education Act states that schools must offer M\u0101ori language courses if requested by parents.<\/p>\n

M\u0101ori Language Week<\/b><\/h3>\n

As one of the official languages of New Zealand (English and Sign Language being the others), M\u0101ori is a large part of our society and culture, from road signs, to artwork, to everyday objects, place names, flora and fauna, and general conversation.<\/p>\n

Large parts of the M\u0101ori language have been adopted by the settlers and are so immersed in our culture that we don\u2019t even notice until we head overseas or have visitors to our shores, and they notice how much the two languages are mingled.<\/p>\n

To highlight Te Reo, the country has just celebrated M\u0101ori Language Week, where most websites were in English and Te Reo, news items focused on the language, and a national challenge was laid down for all Kiwis to learn a M\u0101ori word a week, every week of the year.<\/p>\n

\"Photo<\/a>

Photo by Phillip Capper<\/p><\/div>\n

M\u0101ori Culture & Language<\/b><\/h3>\n

It\u2019s not only the language that has become immersed in the European ways of New Zealand, but the M\u0101ori culture has had a heavy influence on this land down under!<\/p>\n

Hongis (a greeting of rubbing noses), Hakas (a war dance made popular by the All Blacks), Kia Ora (greeting), Ka Pai (all good), Whanau (family), Mana (prestige), Koru (loop), and Wahine (women) are just a few of the many M\u0101ori words and concepts that are intermingled in daily chats and life all around New Zealand.<\/p>\n

The Future Of The M\u0101ori Language<\/b><\/h3>\n

Unfortunately fluent speakers of M\u0101ori are comparatively few today, but 21% of M\u0101ori speaking their own language is a great improvement on the near extinction of the language in the 1970s \u2013 which is the path many other indigenous languages ended up taking.<\/p>\n

As New Zealanders we are also aware of the importance of the indigenous tongue and culture for tourism purposes, which is one of the country\u2019s biggest money spinners.<\/p>\n

Language (indigenous or otherwise) is a vital part of keeping a culture alive \u2013\u00a0if you\u2019re interested in learning anything from Arabic to Zulu <\/i>contact us<\/i><\/a> for courses in your area! \u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Any rugby fans around the world will know of the Haka, royal watchers will have seen a Hongi, and most Brits will have heard the greeting Kia Ora (or drunk the juice of the same name) \u2013 and here in New Zealand (Aotearoa), we\u2019re proud that the indigenous M\u0101ori language (Te Reo) is still going(\u2026)<\/p>\n

\n
\n\t \t\t\t\tCONTINUE READING »<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":2339,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[236,17,28],"tags":[351,66,349,350,348,44],"class_list":["post-2338","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-must-know","category-news-politics-religion-history-law","category-culture-travel","tag-indigenous-languages","tag-language","tag-maori","tag-maori-te-reo","tag-new-zealand","tag-travel"],"yoast_head":"\nMind Your Own Language \u2013 The Fall And Rise Of Maori Te Reo<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Here in New Zealand we\u2019re proud that the indigenous M\u0101ori language is still going strong\u2026or is it?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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