#learning maori

[lt-trick]

I've added to my list of overwhelming agendas: learn basic Māori. Why? well, aside from wanting to visit New Zealand someday, it’s also fueled by my inner fangirl.

This year, I lucked out and was able to get a picture with Karl Urban. Now, I learned a bit of basic German, and if I had the time or guts, I would’ve been all “Wie ghets Sie?” but I chickened out. Being that he’s from NZ, I thought if I ever had the opportunity to meet him again, it would be cool to actually give a decent Māori greeting (minus the hangi, because I don't think we’d be on that level).

True, the fangirliness is a motivator, but it’s the same reason I took American Sign Language. We have hearing impaired folks that come to the movie theater every now and again, and I thought it’d be nice to give simple gestures without relying on just their interpreter friend or family. I wanna broaden my connections to people and language is one way to do it. 

In summation, I'm learning Maori to impress a celebrity I love, but also to connect as well.

it’s 1am and i’m going to go to sleep, but I was too excited not to post this somewhere,

[threemonthsofbeingakiwi]

Tewaka, Tewaka!

[amhariclanguage-blog-blog]

Learning the Maori Language

Maori te reo Maori commonly te reo ("the language"), is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Maori , where it has the status of an official language. Linguists classify it within the Eastern Polynesian languages as being closely related to Cook Islands Maori , Tuamotuan and Tahitian; somewhat less closely to Hawaiian and Marquesan; and more distantly to the languages of Western Polynesia, including Samoan, Tokelauan, Niuean and Tongan. Maori gained this status with the passing of the Maori Language Act in 1987. Most government departments and agencies have bilingual names, for example, the Department of Internal Affairs Te Tari Taiwhenua, and places such as local government offices and public libraries display bilingual signs and use bilingual stationery. New Zealand Post recognises Maori place-names in postal addresses. Dealings with government agencies may be conducted in Maori , but in practice this almost always requires interpreters, restricting its everyday use to the limited geographical areas of high Maori fluency, and to more formal occasions, such as during public consultation. Our Squidoo lens includes a number of learning Maori resources, recommended learning tools, videos, rss feeds, and more. So if you are interested in learning Maori check out the resources below.