Te pae kōrero | Our why

There are many things that define New Zealanders and connect us to our home: and te reo Māori is one of them.

Everyone has their own reasons for wanting to learn te reo and see it become normalised and spoken nationwide. Explore them below and share your favourites to inspire others to get involved.

Add your 'why'

I want to increase my matauranga and te reo maori to be part of keeping the culture alive

Sarah

I want to improve my knowledge and understanding of Te Reo so I can better connect with my tamariki.

Kristi

E ngā reo E ngā mana Tino Rangatiratanga

Teahiaaria

I love learning about traditional Māori knowledge, history and wisdom through the joyful medium of waiata :)

Kate

Mo toku tamariki. . . I want my boys to grow up knowing, respecting and loving the indigenous language of Aotearoa. I am teaching them that speaking and hearing te reo Maori is normal, and that it is our privilege and responsibility to keep the language strong.

Stephanie

Learning more about Te Reo Māori and Tikanga lets me approach work and life in a different, and better, way

Sonia

Ko te reo te mouri o te Māoritanga, heoi ka kōrero Māori au i i rā, i ia pō kia whakarauora mai i te reo rangatira. Kua whakatupuria taku tama nō Apanui i roto i te reo Māori kia Māori ai tōna tuakiritanga, ōna whakaaro, me ōna tikanga: ko ia te reanga hou mō tōna iwi ❤️🤍🖤

Samantha

I want my tamariki to be proud of their culture and heritage and be able to move, connect, communicate and participate between te āo māori, te āo kukī āirani and te āo pakeha.

Sara

Learn my pepeha by heart and incorporate te reo phrases into everyday usgae

Andrew

Our team are learning te reo maori as a group and we are using it in our work environment. Little by little.

Charise

Te reo Māori is distinctively woven through Aotearoa New Zealand's past, present and future. This country is part of my heritage. I want some familiarity with te reo Māori so I can have an understanding of this key feature of our country.

Vanessa

I love the whakatauki 'Ka mua, ka muri' - walk backwards into the future. In order to move forward together, we must carry the knowledge of the past

Nicola

Te Reo Māori is Aotearoa, it is a Taonga

Fiona

The language, the music and the traditions kept us grounded and always stays within us & the next generation.

Lilo

Whanau having a practice of a kupu each day and a new one for each day. I want to build our Maori capabilities within my whanau. Practicing our new karakia everyday

Lilo

I am teacher and I want to improve my knowledge and understanding of te reo and make as many connections with my aakonga as possible. Neralie

Neralie

Te reo Māori is my heritage language. I am learning and speaking for the tipuna who weren't allowed, and for my children that they might, mauri ora

Rob

Ko Te Reo Maori, Te Reo Rangatira, te kaikawe i te honohutanga o te whakaaro Maori, whakaaro Rangatira. No reira tukuna te reo kia rere.

Hori

I decide to acknowledge Te Reo Maori because as I grew up, My whanau would always tell me how they used to get the shitere beat out of them just for saying hello in Maori. They tell me now, to learn Te Reo while I can so that's what I have decided to do.

Andre

He aha ai ki au? Nā te mea he tūturu Māori. Ka ora te reo i ngā wā kātoa. Nā te mea he tōku whānau, he whānaunga, he iwi, he hapū hoki.

April

My tamahine is in the kapahaka group at kura and she is leading a couple of their waiata's. She has been teaching me a poi kanikani all week. :)

Lii

To increase my knowledge in Te Reo

Aditi

Kia kaha Te Reo Māori! As an immigrant, I understand the value of manaakitanga from the perspective of a recipient, and I have undertaken study and activities to make sure I am a good visitor, albeit for life. Speaking the language is the key to meeting this goal, for life.

Jodie

Te Reo Maori is a beautiful language and I love learning more about it.

Lauren

Provides empowering social and economic benefits, as well as our common interests, helps unite and educate us. To better understand and appreciate the differences among individuals in terms of their beliefs and practices. Creating an environment that not only recognizes the differences between those cultures and backgrounds but celebrates them.

Si'i

My Why: is God, Family and Church

Harley

To better understand, to better connect

Inger

Our tamariki are so proud to live in Aotearoa and celebrate the fact there is no other place in the world that you can embrace the language and culture of Te Ao Māori.

Sandra

Remembering on this day 51 years ago, Aunty Hana Te Hemara Jackson carried the Māori language petition up the steps of Parliament in 1972 to present to Matiu Rata and the other Māori MPs. #IamHana.

Ruth Ann

My sister-inlove is Māori and I will love to be able to not only understand Te Reo but also speak Te Reo Māori with her and my nieces and nephews ❤ That is my why! and also, to preserve and embrace the mother tongue of Aotearoa so that in generations to come we do not lose our beautiful Te Reo and can keep the language alive for many more years to come. The games and activities we have going at work not only this Language week but every Māori Language week since joining Access has really helped me with learning and embracing Te Reo Māori day to day.

Eseta

Tōku reo tōku ohooho! Tautoko ngā kaimahi ki te kōrero kiwaha, waiata me te pūrei kēmu "Poi Rākau".

Maia

Learning Te Reo Māori is an important part of being a partner in Te Tiriti o Waitangi and respecting mana whenua and tangata whenua of Aotearoa. Ka ako te reo Māori!

Clare

Aotearoa is my home land and celebrating Te Reo Maori language week makes me feel more connected with my people, whanau and our tangata whenua

Paige

Our Why. . . . . . because we are Te ao Maori and te reo connects us to our tikanga, our whenua, our tangata whenua and our tupuna.

Levon

I am so keen to learn maori language -I am married to a maori - my children and our mokopunas are part maori - I want to be able to speak two languages

paddy (Patricia)

Te Reo Māori is a real taonga that we have here in Aotearoa. Te Reo Māori is part of who I am as Māori, and through the language I learn about my tīkanga and Te Ao Māori. I am going to be speaking Te Reo Māori for Te Wā Tuku Te Reo Māori to uplift the mana of our beautiful reo and share the language with as many people as I can. Kia kaha Te Reo Māori!

Hemi

Aotearoa New Zealand is fortunate to have a rich cultural history. It’s up to us to preserve and grow that for future generations. Part of that is embracing Te Reo Māori. This is part of what makes our country special. I was fortunate to go to a primary school (a very very long time ago) which was proactive in including Te Reo Māori in school life. I’m grateful for that and want the same for all kids.

Rachel

I have recently become a Grandmother and my desire is for my mokopuna (my Putiputi) to learn her reo! As a teacher, I feel it is VERY important for every student in Aotearoa to learn Te reo Māori

Justine

Kia ora koutou! It is important to me (Ngāpuhi, Te Āti Awa) because I see the way colonisation, assimilation and racism have harmed my people, specifically through my Koro. He grew up beaten for speaking te reo, he grew up with negative feelings towards his people because of the prevalent propaganda/scapegoating - he rejected his culture. I never learnt te reo growing up because my father never learnt te reo, because my Koro refused to teach it to his children out of fear of the negative impacts that knowledge and association could have on his whanau. I want to learn te reo Māori to fight back against the efforts to erase it and us. I took a 101 class at university, and when I went home to Rotorua I did a mihimihi for my Koro. He was amazed I had learnt it at uni. He couldn't believe that it would be upheld and celebrated in that way. It is important we all continue to learn and strive to do better because it is not enough to not be racist, we must be anti-racist. It is important because Māori are tangata whenua, we are the people of Aotearoa, to live here is to be visitors, we must respect te reo Māori and te ao Māori (they come hand-in-hand). I am practicing karakia every day for Te Wiki o te Reo Māori. I hope to continue with this and more beyond tēnei week. I hope you are challenging yourselves too. Karawhiua!

Imogen

Nicky

After 56 Years of denying my beautiful language, culture, traditions and of her I am. A Maori Cook Islander wahine toa for Karaiti. Also lots of dreams about tupuna, whenua, and myself talking te reo in them is my passion and WHY! !

Kamaria

Kōrerotia tō tātou reo. Whakatairangahia tō tātou reo. Whakamanahia tō tātou reo.

Tama

Kia ora koutou, ko Vanessa tōku ingoa. I'm still learning and finding my place, but for me, speaking and learning te reo Māori helps me feel more connected with te ao Māori and my whakapapa. I don't know much about my whakapapa, that knowledge has been lost over many generations. But when I speak or sing or learn I feel closer to them, like that lost knowledge is within my reach.

Vanessa

I'm excited to learn more about New Zealand's culture in my workplace! Also, it's my own journey and a privilege to be part of. He ao te rangi ka uhia, mā te huruhuru te manu ka rere ai - As the clouds cover the sky, so do feathers enable a bird to fly. (Te Pihinga:107)

Sheree

I want to help keep te Reo Māori alive!

Xavier

Tēnā tātou. . Ko David Kopa tēnei, Nō Ngāpuhi nui tonu oku tūpuna. I whanau mai au i Otaua, i tupu ake au i Taranaki. E noho ana au ki Kaikohekohe. Tēnā koutou katoa.

David

Not only to reconnect with my tipuna but also to be an example to my tamariki.

Frankie

Hai ako i tō tātau reo rangatira, hoki ki te kāinga korero ai.

Donna

To Celebrate Te Reo Māori as “Our Reo” Mō tātou katoa!

Mel

Mō tātou, ā, mō kā uri ā muri ake nei.

Emma

I love te reo Māori and all that emcompasses the culture. We are blessed to have such a beautiful culture in Aotearoa.

Anita

Te Reo is the most important and beautiful language of our country to cherish and to teach our tamariki so it can continue to grow and flourish as it should have and is meant to .

Hilary

We will share our local purākau with our tamariki. As well as continue with our Te Reo Māori challenges for Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori!

Heidi

We are exploring the native manu of Aotearoa as they feature in so many of our pukapuka.

Melanie

To learn waiata and sing together.

Jess

Learning Maori is such a great experience and I enjoy learning new words.

Juby

My why is because of my mum she was 1 of so many that was growled at smacked even sometimes vebal abuse and told not to speak there reo she is my why

Nauleen

To feel more confident speaking te Reo Māori.

Shelly

I want to feel more confident speaking te reo Māori!

Shel

Language shapes culture. Learning Te reo Māori keeps the culture alive.

Jenny

To embed Te Reo Māori into my everyday to set the example for my son and the future!

alyssa

To better understand all that te ao Māori has to offer.

Florence

Taku aha, e aku mokopuna, e aku tamarki

Lizzy

For the community! For the kids! For the social intelligence of my own kids, and for the mana of our Maori mokopuna :)

Shanon

Kia ora, Ko Laurence toku ingoa. No Tutaenui Road i Rangitikei ahau.

Laurence

Strengthen our reo and spread our amazing mana that we have as a people. So our Tamariki grow without the whakama. #Kiakahatereomaori

Nicole

To learn, grow and share alongside my tamariki.

Gen

To learn along with the next generation. I wish we had been able to learn the language when I was at school

Emma

When i feel the when, its just so emotional you know

Riley

I love to learn the history of Aotearoa and te Reo o Māori. It is a language and culture that that has so much to offer and it's my history too - which penny took a while to drop, While I've read things Māori reasonably often in past times, I regret I wasn't more active sooner. Never too late though. Kia kaha te Reo Māori!

Lily

I'll sing to keep this culture alive and known.

Rosie

For me, it's about gaining knowledge and strengthening our shared understanding of Te Ao Māori. I consider myself fortunate to contribute in modest ways every day to share the grace of the language and culture.

Ashley

I want to learn and understand more as an integral piece of our history and future.

Jen

Because Maaori reo is a taonga. My people have done too much damage to the people and land of Aotearoa, learning the reo helps gulf the gap.

Yosef

My mother was of the generation where they were punished for speaking te reo māori in the playgrounds. She spoke so eloquently in te reo it was beautiful to listen to korero i nga wa katoa to her brother and sisters. They were great orators. She vowed that our reo will never be lost. I am learning my reo and will continue this kaupapa for my whānau for the future of whakapapa and we are gifted to have such a beautiful language that is forever evolving, Tihei Mauri Ora!

Diane

Our class has been proudly learning how to sing E Minaka Ana and discussing the importance of the lyrics. Let us be staunch in speaking Maori! I desire that my talk be like that of a leader, my noble language my precious inheritance. Astound me with your maturity by the evanescence, the spirit you show when speaking Maori. Let us be staunch in speaking Maori!

Kerryn

E mihi ana ki ngā taonga o Aotearoa e noho nei au.

Gabrielle

I graduated Toi Toi Māori Leadership 2022 and I am striving to uplift Te Reo and the beautiful world of Te Ao Maori within Kiwirail Ōtautahi.

Tini

Growing up in the South Island in the eighties I received no education or exposure to te reo. I love the resurgence and want to be part of it.

Lauren

We are the only country that speaks te reo. If as a country we learn te reo I believe it will go a long way to healing the trauma of the pass and understanding it for a better future for the people of Aotearoa. I believe what’s good for Māori is good for everyone but not the other way around.

Vicki

I would like to learn more waiata

Caroline

We will help whaanau to access Māori language resources wherever possible

Faye

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We will help whaanau to access Māori language resources wherever possible