pokotiwha. 1. (interjection) a very strong curse, an insulting swear word, an expression of anger or a curse expressing a lack of desire to do something.
Some of the most frequent words in Māori, as in other languages, are function or grammar words; these include words like: te, i, ki, a, mā, ō. Rather than necessarily carrying a specific meaning, they may indicate the relationships between the phrases and clauses in sentences.
Yeah, nah. Kiwis are exceptionally agreeable, so even when they want to disagree with you, they'll throw in a "yeah" as well. Basically, "yeah, nah" is a non-committal way of saying no. As in: "Do you want to go for a hike this weekend?" "Yeah, nah, I'll think about it ay."
'Chur' means 'yes' and is usually followed by the word 'bro' meaning 'brother'. For example: Person A asks “Can I please borrow your ball” and person B replies, “Chur bro”. Togs: Important if you are visiting NZ during the summer.
Ka kite anō
Meaning: See you later.
Place names are probably the most commonly mispronounced Māori words. Whether people are talking about Tower Poe (Taupō), Parra Pram (Paraparaumu), Wonger Ray (Whangarei) or the Wire Wrapper (Wairarapa), if they're not pronouncing it correctly they're stripping that place name's mana and the story behind it.
Commonly mispronounced place names across New Zealand include Waikato (wai-kat-oh), Taupō (tauh-poh) and Hokitika (hoeka-tika), and, in the wider Manawatū you may hear "man-a-watu" (Manawatū), "oh-taki" (Ōtaki) or "tehr-rua" (Tararua).
Kāore he raru!: No problem!
Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipukakapikimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuakitanatahu. This name comes from the Maori language and refers to a hill located in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand. At 85 characters long, this name is often considered to be one of the longest place names in the world.
The 'wh' digraph originally sounded like the 'wh' in 'whisper', but in most dialects has evolved to be more like the English 'f' sound. followed by an 'a', 'e' or 'o', pronounce it with as little sibilant sound as possible (almost like a 'd').
Urban migration, social pressure, physical and verbal punishment of children, and 'pepper potting' policies (where individual Māori families were scattered throughout Pākeha communities to encourage assimilation) all contributed to an intergenerational suppression of the language.
Learning Māori grammar and the entire language is not at all difficult. According to Chris Krageloh, a psychology & linguistics researcher from Auckland University of Technology, Māori is among the easiest languages to learn since the sounds typically remain the same regardless of how the letters are arranged.
Mā te wā - See you next time.
The Māori proverb, 'aroha atu, aroha mai' means 'love received, love returned'. The rainbow-inspired installation has several layers of meaning. The colours of the rainbow symbolise inclusion, freedom, peace, love and harmony. And in traditional Māori culture, āniwaniwa (rainbows) are a portent of future events.
Originally team selected was 'loosely' governed in terms of heritage, but now all players must have Māori whakapapa or genealogy confirmed in order to represent the side.
The Native Schools Act 1867 required instruction in English where practicable, and while there was no official policy banning children from speaking Māori, many, were physically punished. It was a policy of assimilation, and while phased out in the 20th century, the ramifications have been felt for generations.
Māori were widely distributed through New Zealand but they were a small population (about 100,000 people) living in a variety of iwi (tribes) and smaller family groups. They weren't a homogenous group with central government that acted together so an invasion and colonisation would have been difficult to organise.
Te reo Māori, listed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization as 'vulnerable', is only proficiently spoken by around one in 100 New Zealanders. Another 2.7 percent are able to hold a basic conversation, according to census figures - all up that's around 185,000 people.
FYI: There is no 's' in the Māori alphabet ❌ ? ❌
A little Māori 101 today about not adding the letter 's' to Māori kupu — because that letter doesn't exist in the Māori language ? ???♀️ Yup, you heard me.
The Māori language is known as te reo Māori or simply te reo (the language). It is the language of the Māori people of New Zealand. Te reo Māori is an official language in New Zealand, along with New Zealand Sign Language.
Te reo Māori (known locally as Māori) has fewer than 127,000 native speakers worldwide — making it an endangered language.