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'

Nga mihi Kia koutou katoa I've just started my te reo journey (40) I want to help keep our language/culture/tikanga alive and help educate anybody who wants to learn along the way.

Tonii

Respecting the reo of New Zealand and learning

Deb

I’m a teacher and for me it’s about living the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi. I moved here from Canada 20 years ago and I think it’s important that I model being a life long learner to my students and whānau. It’s important to take a risk and learn to speak more Māori at school-normalising Te reo Māori.

Andrea

Myself and my little whānau live in Australia, I have had to keep myself up to date with my reo and now my husband is on his journey which helps our household korero. It is important to be apart of my culture, no matter where we live, in keeping our reo going and tikanga alive. Things change very rapidly and the future growth for our culture I would like to be apart of.

Kiriwai

E ngakau nui rawa atu ahau ki te ako I tò tatou reo me òna tikanga

Peter

I am very proud when I hear Te Reo Maori being spoken, so I will endeavour to use it as much as possible at my school in the next week.

Ruth (Gordie)

Ko te reo te Mauri o te mana Maori

Pirihira

My mokos are my why! ! Ensure they know their whakapapa and be proud of it! !

Casey

Ko Michelle toku ingoa. Ko Titirangi te maunga, No Turanganui a Kiwa ahau. I have lived in NZ and Turanga my whole life. I was educated in local schools and taught all the Hirini Melbourne waiata and the basics of Te Reo. Now that I am a teacher I believe all tamariki of NZ deserve to have the same experiences and more! We learn about our place, our Marae, and the Maori way of being. Our classes are all named after Atua and we learn to be Kaitiaki of Te Ao. Much of a Maori way of being speaks to me on a spiritual level and I believe is inclusive and valuable for all our tamariki. Being Kaitiaka of Tawhirimatea in our school, we live by the whakatauaki - Hokia ki o maunga kia purea e koe I nga hou o Tawhirimatea! Return to your ancestral mountains to be cleansed by the winds of Tawhirimatea! An important thing to remember, never forget where we come from and what we have been through. Use it to learn and lead us forward. Take the guidance of our tupuna! Arohanui.

Michelle

Te Reo Maori is our Language We need to make sure that it is here for the future Generations to come

Maxina

I really want to try to gain confidence to speak, pronounce & understand some Te Reo. I have some very basic language. I want to feel confident to have a go & for it to be okay for my pronunciation to be incorrect, but please let me try & help me to learn.

Penny

Because after working with both ends of child development from birth to adolescents, ive seen the affects that lack of identity has on the rangatahi of Aotearoa so for me to keep Māori alive by using te reo Māori, practicing tikanga its important for the wellbeing of Māori to have their mauri and stand strong as Māori. Also since ive gone into depths of te ao Māori and understanding maramataka and other practices I've realised how beautiful the culture is. And as a 2nd generation Pākehā I feel its my obligation as a New Zealand citizen to korero i te reo Māori.

Ben

Te reo Māori is a taonga we all need to nurture and grow. Wouldn’t it be cool for Pōneke to be a te reo Māori city by 2040? That’s the plan and I want to be part of that!

Kate

I am a New Zealander of European origin (several generations back ) and I have made several failed attempts to learn Te Reo Maori over the years. I returned to NZ 12 years ago after spending 12 years living overseas in French places and began teaching music again and also ended up teaching French. One day it just struck me as all wrong to be teaching a foreign language when I couldn't even speak the language of the original New Zealanders. After questioning myself over whether it was OK as a pakeha to do this ( was it tokenism ? was it my place as a pakeha ? etc ) I came to the decision ( realisation ? ) that it was actually my duty as a NZer to learn this language. It's the best way to give the language, and therefore the culture, the respect, value and place it should have in our country. So I'm doing it - learning through Te Wananga O Aotearoa and wanting to take part on Sept 14th. The best outcome would be that it reminds many of us to use these words every day and that we all do it more and more . . . .

Christine

Preservation and revitalisation of Te Reo Māori is most important to me for the future generations to come.

Eruera

Arohatia te reo Māori rangatira Kia mau ki tōku māoritanga 💜💗💛❤️💙🤎🤍💚🧡

Rata

Language is the key to understanding a culture. As a kaiako it is part of my role to ignite interest and understanding in te ao Māori to our tamariki, the tangata of the future. Kia kaha te Reo Māori.

Michaela

As a New Zealander I feel a deep sense of responsibility to help retain our cultural, spiritual and natural heritage. It is our identity. Māori culture is unique, beautiful, friendly, happy, deep and nurturing. The principles of kaitiakitanga can teach us all how to move forward in an ever changing world with respect, consideration and appreciation of Papatūānuku. Learning to speak te reo is an important part of that understanding.

Jennifer

I want to show my students that I'm learning Te Reo Māori from them and alongside them. I'm going to play "Whare Whare" i te reo Māori for my Te Wā Tuku Reo Māori

Jenny

My why is for my children and grandchildren. I really would love for them to be raised in a country in which the native language is thriving and accepted by all.

Johnson

I WANT TO HONOUR TE TIRITI O WAITANGI AS AN IMMIGRANT TO THIS COUNTRY. Having studied at beginner level I want to play my part as a teacher and use te reo Māori. Te Reo Māori is the indigenous language of Aotearoa and it's beautiful!

Karen

Aotearoa's National Language

Blair

He taringa, he reo, he whatu mō aku tamariki, mō ōku hapū, mō ōku iwi otirā he kanohi mō ngā tāngata e hiahia ana ki te akohia ngā tini āhuatanga o Te Ao Māori.

Rachelle

My why is to show that even though I am not Māori, I am able to respect and willing want to learn and understand the language of my husband and children. To show them the importance of their language, and encourage them to keep learning.

Emily

Te reo Māori is a beautiful language. We are blessed to be able to share this knowledge together.

Phoebe

To embrace and enjoy Māori spoken everyday.

Abe

Both my partner and myself grew up with little te reo in our whare. We are choosing to change this by learning, so we can teach our tamariki (and ourselves) an important part of our culture.

Lisa

Because Te Reo is so important and our tamariki need to hear it and speak it more for the language to grow and be respected

Amanda

Naa ngaa atua i takoha mai he reo moo taatau te iwi Maaori hei koorero. Noo reira whakatairangangia raa te reo Maaori koorerongia whakanuingia whamaua nei kia ita

Carl

My ancestors sailed here in the biggest ocean on the planet, and risked their lives for their vision of a better, bigger one. If I don't learn and get better with my Reo I am not repaying the debt of their vision.

Zeb

Because I believe te reo Maori and the wide spread of it is important to all New Zealand citizens. By taking part I am making a commitment to my on-going learning and encouraging others to join too so that we can grow this moment to two or three million! Plus, it's a beautiful language to speak, to sing and to share.

Ronelle

I akō au I tāku kaiako e Putputi ā Te Wānunga ō Aotearoa. Inaianei kei te pracitiki au! Ka hiahia au I te reo Māori mō tātou. Kia ōra rā tātou. Ngā mihi nui. Āwatea.

Kristin

Kia ora e te whānau o Te Wā Tuku Reo Māori I'm taking part because I want to make sure that te reo Māori, our precious national taonga, is spoken, celebrated and becomes a part of every household in Aotearoa. I'm so grateful to our team at ACC for making it possible for me, at the age of 50, to really start gripping up the reo and feeling more confident with it, both in my mahi and in my life outside of work. For one of our ACC whānau it's korero Māori only during Mahuru - and it's completely wonderful to have that mānawanawa, awhi and tautoko from a colleague. Kei te hiamo mo Te Wā Tuku Reo Māori! Tēnā rawa atu katoa, Nell

Nell

Learning and understanding Te Reo Maori completes who I am.

Barry

Kia ora. I work in a Rehab Service. One quarter of the people I work with are Māori. I am trying hard to learn Te Reo Māori and also the tikanga. My goal is for Māori to feel as at home in this Service as they do in their own home or on their own marae.

Terry

The more people that speak te reo the better for the future!

davida

Kia tau te wairua 💙

Lucy

I believe that speaking te reo Māori honours Māori people in Aotearoa and the people that came before them. As a teacher it is so important to put a huge emphasis on this so my students grow up knowing and understanding the how and the why behind learning te reo and Māori culture in general!

Bonnie

Te reo has allowed me to gain a greater understanding of te ao Māori and it's relationship with the whenua, Moana and rangi. Learning about our indigenous culture will allow us to better protect papatūānuku and improve our collective wellbeing.

Liam

I am non Māori but I love the language. This is my 4th year of learning te reo. I am 72 so please don’t let age hold you back. It’s a beautiful language, the original language of our land so come on Kiwis. . . get out there and learn!

Jude

It's just the logical and right thing to do! ! ! ! ! Te Reo Māori is a beautiful language intrinsically linked to its culture and history and is unique to Aotearoa NZ. It's so important for us to look after this taonga and encourage more people to embrace it. I'm a 1st generation Pākehā NZer on a long journey to ako te reo and am constantly surprised and intrigued by what I learn. And I'm a language teacher!

Vicki

It's a chance to recognise and mark the way things are, how they have been and to look to the future for how we would like things to be. If Te Reo Maori not practised, understood and appreciated it will be lost, and with that will be the loss of people and culture unique to this whenua.

Ellie

I want to take part to inspire rangatahi, especially my students and to lead by example. Furthermore. To give them the opportunity to be part of something bigger, part of history in the making and the chance for them to be a good ancestor. I also hope that one day ALL of Aotearoa will value and cherish this taonga we have in Te Reo Māori and to understand that when you understand someones language, you understand the people. This can bring us together as a country. Kia Kaha te Reo Māori

Krystal

E arohatia ana mātou Te Reo Māori me ona Tikanga i ngā wā katoa

Heidi

Tēna koutou e te whanau i tēnei kaupapa Ko Maungapohatu te Maunga Tapu Ko Tauranga te awa Ko Mataatua te Waka Ko Te Mapou Te marae Ko Tane Nui a Rangi Te whare Tupuna Ko Tamakaimoana Te hapū Ko Tuhoe te Iwi Ko TeOwai Kingi tōku ingoa I whanau mai toko wha āku tamariki engari Tekau ma rima āku tamariki whangai. Rua tekau ma iwa āku mokopuna Rua tekau ma rima āku mokopuna tuarua no reira tino tino whakahirahira ki Te kōrero Māori i ngā wā Katoa, i Te kainga ki waho. . Tekau ma tahi āku mokopuna tuarua e Haere ana ki ngā Kōhanga Reo. Ko Te tumanako pai tēnei kōrero ki a koutou. No reira Tēna koutou Tēna koutou Tēna koutou Katoa.

Teowai

It's one of our official languages and as its the indigenous one I want to be part of the solution.

Heather

To honour our Tūpuna by keeping our Reo alive forever.

Ness

To make the most of having a nation wide network to inspire and use Reo and waiata to learn and teach. I want to share the dream of my nanny Liz Hunkin, those who have walked with her and our tipuna to teach the reo to as many peoe as possible to keep it alive. I cannot share footage as it involves Akonga and staff permissions for a lot os people.

Kelly

I think te reo maori is beautiful and as New Zealanders it’s part of our uniqueness and heritage.

Bryony

I think what made taking part was that we want Te Reo Maori to be our new normal in our whare. We are still learning but every word, phrase we learn is added to our whanau vocabulary! Being able to revive our Reo alongside our Tamariki is what it's all about!

Jonnelle

If I don't take action then I am doing injustice to my language and to my people. Many advocates for the inclusion of Te Reo in our kura have added their voice. It comes down to me to keep their vision alive and add to their voices. If I can show to be proud of speaking Te Reo then hopefully others will embrace my language. That Te Reo is a beautiful spiritual language that speaks from the heart and connects us to our essence in life.

normie

I want to help keep our language, our culture alive for our kids :)

Natahlia

Kei te ako ahau i te reo Māori ki te Wānanga o Aotearoa, ka haere tonu ahau ki tōku haerenga ia wiki ia wiki, ia rā ia rā.

Megan

I am learning to speak my native younger as my mother's side of the family is twelve generations of maori and I want to be able to reo to my ancestors and thank the different iwis for letting me walk on their land when I do

Merlin

Language defines us. . . it not only allows us to express our worldview but moulds and shapes it: the way we perceive and articulate our ideas, our reality, our surroundings, our culture, our social interactions and our self-perception. As a Pākehā, to kōrero in Reo shows respect for my Tiriti partners and allows me to better understand a Māori worldview.

Megan

It is important to take part as a way of embracing my culture and te ao maori making it a normality for my babies. . Staying connected to our language, helps us to stay connected to our whenua, whanau and whakapapa. My tamariki are my reason "why?"

Precious

I've always wanted to learn Te Reo. I have done beginners classes twice over the years si my pronunciation is pretty good. I do wish more children had the chance to be bi-lingual(especially Maori tamariki but all in Aotearoa. I find it so hard to fit it in my life and very difficult now I'm in my 60's to learn to korero in Te Reo. It is so much easier when younger so any chance I get I try to pick up some phrases.

Maxine

It is important to learn and understand our language and our culture as New Zealanders. It is a part of who we are and what underpins our identity.

Lisa

E pupiri ana ahau te whakaaro nei, he tāonga tuku iho mā tātou tūpuna. Te Reo, he wahanga ō tātou tuakiri.

Paula

Since I have arrived in Aotearoa / New Zealand from Germany I have been very much intrigued/ fascinated by Maoridom and Te Reo. I think there is so much to share and learn from each other that no opportunity should be missed to get into action. Kore rawa e rawaka te reo kotahi.

Theo

I was born into a bilingual home; I know that my reo Pakeha became dominant, because that is what we were told to use and forced to use at school. My aunts and uncles would korero in te reo and pakeha, however moving away from my roots, I didn't loose my reo. Being amongst Maori speaking te reo just becomes automatic. It is a joy for me now, that my adult children are learning to korero - not because I forced them, but because they have come round to realising just how important it is to korero because you are Maori. And I especially love the little ditties that were turned into waiata with so much meaning in just a few kupu.

Pat

Kia ora, I'd love to learn more of our reo I was one of those who's mama and papa who never spoke in front of us when we were young. But when I became a teen they started to korero which to me was to late see I'm one of those slow learners lol. But I know a little bit but I do wish I was fluent . Nga Mihi

Gloria

I work in an area that is on a voyage to be more culturally aware, safe, responsible. I have always loved te reo Māori and this is an opportunity to practice and share that love.

Jane

I am passionate about learning Te Reo Maori. For me it's about honouring the Treaty of Waitangi and making sure this taonga is preserved for generations to come. It excites me to see a resurgence amongst our young people to learn and use Te Reo Maori in everyday life.

Ruth

I was lucky enough to have te reo Māori as part of school and having returned from UK I am so excited that it is becoming part of the mainstream. Hīkoia te Kōrero!

Anna

It is important for me to take part because I moved here 5 years ago from Canada to study teaching. I realised once I got here that although there are some serious problems and disperities in NZ in regards to Maori/Pakeha, it is A LOT better than the way things are between Europeans a d indigenous people back home and I am sad I never got to fully learn about and celebrate the native culture in my homeland. I feel an empathy for the people here. I feel a responsibility as a teacher and as an open minded individual to embrace te reo and te ao, so that I can help NZers be more united in the future, even if the different I make is only a small one.

Kate

To lead by example. To show my whanau this is important to me and that it should be important to them too.

Pauline

It's one of our official languages and as its the indigenous one I want to be part of the solution.

Heather

I have a new mokopuna and I choose to only speak to her in Te Reo.

Karen

its about stepping up to do the best I can , as an example for the wahine I work with. Its about me being me. mauri ora

Haami

Because it is a beautiful language and is fun to learn

Louise

Ko tōku reo, tōku ohooho; tōku reo, tōku mapihi maurea; tōku reo, tōku whakakai marihi.

Raihania

I feel it is important for me to increase my skills in Te Reo Maori. I live in a bicultural country and should be able to communicate in both languages.

Sabien

Embracing Te Reo Maaori is part of a shared journey that enriches all of our lives and our communities

Peter

It is important to raise awareness and learn about our culture, history and language. I want my class to also realise this.

Suzi

I think I should be one 'in five million' speaking te reo in this country. . .

Lisa

To acknowledge who I am.

Leonie Ngahuia

Te Reo is our heritage. .

Marion

It's important to me to take part, and encourage the ākonga and Kaiako in my centre to do so as well, because I think everyone living in New Zealand should have the opportunity and confidence to kōrero in te reo Māori. Māori language week is the best place to start.

Katie

It's important because te reo Māori is an official language of New Zealand.

Becky

Ko toku reo, no te kainga e ngaro haere ana te mita o taku turangawaewae.

Hirini

I want to promote and encourage others to learn and use Te Reo.

Yvonne

Watching BLM and doing some of my own work on being white made me realise I need to take more action at home in Aotearoa New Zealand to uphold the Te Tiriti o Waitangi and become a strong ally . I work in health and want to support the Wharerata Declaration working with a clinical and cultural approach in a meaning and respectful manner.

Karen

I'm Maori and can't speak enough te reo Maori

Ellen

It is our language, it is us.

Roz

I feel the revival has been a progressive but slow burn. Māori can be for everyone, and acknowledges our tupuna and our beginnings, as well as the way we walk together into our future.

Therese

I’m an early childhood teacher and I think this is so incredibly important and awesome.

Louise

It is important to value Te Reo Maori - New Zealand is the only country in the world that can maintain the language.

susan

It's important to embrace the Maori culture, since moving back to NZ I think it's time to get back to my roots.

Peita

I have just moved to Auckland as a Primary Teacher and work in a school which has taught me so much already about the importance of the Maori heritage and language. On my first day with the school we learnt about the local iwi whilst climbing up Maungawhau and it was fascinating to hear the history and culture associated with this important place. I feel a sense of responsibility in moving here to understand this better and do my part in helping to build a bi-cultural society. It also ties in with my interests in my own Welsh heritage back home, as similarly it has always been important to maintain those language skills and cultural ties.

Angharad

It's important because I wish to have a better understanding of the culture and tongue. I have young children and I want to be able to engage with them and learn with them. I work in a government department and we have a large maori population with us and I wish to be able to identify with them and be respectful to their culture.

Carrie

te reo Maori to me. . the Maori way is good in me. . . . .

Terry

It is important to take part because we need to treasure our languages. By using te reo Maori we are keeping the language alive in this land. We are also supporting the aspirations stated in our national document - Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Sonia

Because te reo should be heard and spoken in new zealand everyday. I am very much a novice, and want to improve, for many reasons, one being respect.

Gina

Fostering the culture and learning about ourselves and others

Emily

Because Te Reo is a taonga that must not be lost and as Kiwis I would love to see in the future us all be bi -lingual. And with learning the language I also found I learnt a lot about the culture and customs and the disastrous effects of colonisation on the Maori people which is something I strongly believe needs to be addressed and that Maori leaders should have the prime say in how this could be done. . . .

It's important to be a part of keeping Te Reo alive in its country and to champion diversity and inclusion

Sue

Because I am New Zealand European and of Ngāi Tahu descent, and am on a journey of discovering my identity, and knowing about my whakapapa and ancestry.

Raewyn

Kia Ora whānau, Its important to incorporate Te Reo into our everyday lives so we can normalize our Reo! Mauri Ora

sapphire

As part of being and Early Childhood Teacher we use Maori in our daily practice. We want to enhance what we already know and gain more skills to share with the tamariki.

Lyvania