Māori phrasebook

The Māori language (te reo Māori) is cherished by the indigenous Māori people of New Zealand as a treasure (taonga) and many Pākehā (New Zealanders of "European" descent) are now learning it. Although it is an official language of New Zealand, along with English and New Zealand Sign Language, only 3.5% of New Zealanders (and only 21% of ethnic Māori) can conduct a conversation in Māori. Virtually all indigenous Māori speakers are bilingual and converse in English at least equally competently. Many Māori Australians also speak the Māori language.

Māori is a Polynesian language, and has many cognates with other Polynesian languages such as Hawaiian, Tongan and Samoan. A number of Māori words have been adopted into everyday New Zealand conversation, even while speaking English, and many place names are of Māori origin. Being able to correctly pronounce Māori words is a valued skill since incorrectly pronounced Māori sounds like fingernails scratching on a blackboard and will immediately identify you as a visitor to the country (or a culturally ignorant local). Even a tolerable and halting attempt at the correct pronunciation is better than a poor guess – your effort to get it right will be appreciated and accepted.

As you might expect, one hundred fifty years ago, accents, vocabularies and word constructions were as variegated as the differences between Glaswegian and Cockney Englishes are today. With many people now having lost their localisations as well as their fluency, new learners are learning less localised and more homogeneous versions.

Māori has a close relationship with the New Zealand variant of English, with many consonants and vowels sharing the same pronunciation. Many English loanwords are also present in Māori for post-European settlement concepts, such as pirihimana (police), tāra (dollar), iparangi (internet), kangarū (kangaroo), Ahitereiria (Australia), Poihākena (Sydney) and Poipiripi (Melbourne).

An exception to this process is the native language of the Cook Islands, a completely self governing, tropical outlier of the Realm of New Zealand. Here the language is almost as different from the registers spoken in the North and South islands of New Zealand as Chaucerian English is from Californian. That said, Cook Islanders seem to find it easier to understand "mainland" Māori than the other way around.

Pronunciation guide

The New Zealand Māori language is relatively simple to pronounce.

Vowels

There are five vowel sounds, each with a long and short form:

a: like strut (IPA: ɐ)
ā: like in palm (IPA: ɑː)
e: like dress
ē: longer version of e; roughly like ea in pear
i: like happy (IPA: i)
ī: like fleece (IPA: iː)
o: a shorter version of ō (IPA: o)
ō: like (non-rhotic) north (IPA: ɔː)
u: a shorter version of ū; roughly like in put (IPA: ʉ)
ū: like goose (IPA: uː)

There are several vowel blends: ae, ai (as in pie), ao (as in mouth), au (as in goat), ei (as in face), oi (as in choice), oe, and ou

In written Māori, the long vowels are often denoted by macrons (bars over the letters). Sometimes you will see words where a vowel letter is repeated, e.g. the Māori name for Inland Revenue is Te Tari Taake (you can probably guess why they don't spell it Te Tari Tāke). This may indicate that the vowel is pronounced "long", but modern usage is to use the macron when possible.

Thus Māori, Maaori and Maori would all represent the same word; although you will rarely see it spelled "Maaori". You may occasionally see long vowels with a diaeresis ("Mäori") or other marks instead of a macron due to typesetting limitations.

Macrons have tended not to be written when a Māori word has been a commonly used word by people speaking English (including with the word Māori), and macrons have generally not appeared on direction signs or maps; however, as more people become aware of the correct pronunciation of various Māori words and place names, and of the instructive guidance that macrons provide by indicating how words should be pronounced, the use of macrons is increasing in New Zealand society, including in official documents. Some road direction signs for Taupō (both the town and the lake) are now written as Taupō; whereas, prior to 2008, the macron was always missing.

Consonants

There are ten consonants in Māori:

h: like hello (IPA: h)
k: like skit (IPA: k)
m: like milk (IPA: m)
n: like nose (IPA: n)
p: like spin (IPA: p)
r: flapped R, like American butter (IPA: ɾ)
t: like still (IPA: t)
w: like will (IPA: w)
wh: like fin (IPA: f)
ng: like sing (IPA: ŋ)

Syllables

Māori words are broken into syllables which end with a vowel. Place names often consist of morphemes, or words which are combined to give a larger word, e.g. wai (water) and roa (long) are combined to give Wairoa. Try to recognise these morphemes (see the list of geographic expressions below) and pronounce the name by breaking it into its components.

For example:

Akatarawa: is said A ka ta ra wa
Māori: is said Maao-ri (Remember to have your tongue forward when you say the r, so that you make the flap sound).
Paraparaumu: is said Pa-ra-pa-rau-mu (commonly mispronounced Pa-ra-pa-ra-u-mu)
Whangarei: is said Fa nga rei (Fa nga ray)

Grammar

Māori word root combinations tend to have a major root subject followed by qualifier suffixes. This means a literal translation from Māori to English produces a lot of transposed word combinations.

For example:

Rotorua → roto "lake" + rua "two" = "two lakes" (or perhaps second lake, as Ihenga discovered Rotoiti first).
kaimoana → kai "food" + moana "sea" = "seafood".
tangata pūhuruhuru → tangata "person" + pūhuruhuru "hairy" = "hairy person" (from Te Rauparaha's Ka Mate haka, one of two used by the All Blacks rugby team)

Māori pronouns have singular, dual and plural forms. Therefore pronouns vary depending on whether they refer to one, two, or three or more people:

Kei te pai ahau. → I am fine. (one person)
Kei te pai māua. → We are fine. (two people)
Kei te pai mātou. → We are fine. (three or more people)

Phrase list

An ordinary traveller will not need to resort to speaking Māori to make themselves understood. However an understanding of Māori words and their meanings will lead to an appreciation of the culture and enhance the travel experience.

Māori take meetings and greetings seriously. Visitors and honoured guests will often be welcomed in a formal ceremony known as a pōwhiri. While such ceremonies generally take place on a marae, it has become accepted practice that such ceremonies may also take place at conferences, important meetings, and similar ceremonial occasions. On such formal occasions, protocol will normally mean that a representative or adviser who can speak Māori will be assigned to the visitors' party to assist and explain what is happening and may formally speak (whaikorero) to introduce the visitors.

Donation: Koha

Basics

Hello (to one person): Tēnā koe (Teh-NAH kweh)
Hello (to two people): Tēnā kōrua (Teh-NAH KAW-roo-ah)
Hello (to a group of three or more): Tēnā koutou (Teh-NAH koh-toh)
Hello (informal): Kia ora (KEE aw-rah)
Welcome: Nau mai / Haere mai (HIGH-reh MIGH); (often used together, e.g. Nau mai, haere mai ki Aotearoa. "Welcome to New Zealand".)
How are you?: Kei te pēhea koe?; (Kei te pēhea kōrua? to two people, Kei te pēhea koutou? to three or more people)
Fine, thank you: Kei te pai ahau.
What is your name?: Ko wai tō ingoa?
My name is ______: Ko ______ tōku ingoa.
Please: koa (Homai koa he kaputi = Give me a cup of tea, please )
Thank you: kia ora
Yes: āe
No: kāore; kāo
Goodbye (to the person staying): E noho rā (Eh naw-haw RAH)
Goodbye (to the person going): Haere rā (HIGH-reh RAH)
Goodbye (informal): Hei konei rā
Do you speak English?: Kei te kōrero reo Pākehā koe?
Good morning.: Ata mārie
Good afternoon.: Ahiahi mārie
Good night.: Pō mārie
I don't understand: Kaore au i te orotau.
Where is the toilet?: Kei hea te wharepaku?

Numbers

1: tahi (tah-hee)
2: rua (roo-ah)
3: toru (taw-roo)
4: whā (fah)
5: rima (ree-ma)
6: ono (o-naw)
7: whitu (fih-too)
8: waru (wah-roo)
9: iwa (ee-wah)
10: tekau (teh-koh)
11: tekau ma tahi
12: tekau ma rua
13: tekau ma toru
14: tekau ma whā
15: tekau ma rima
16: tekau ma ono
17: tekau ma whitu
18: tekau ma waru
19: tekau ma iwa
20: rua tekau
21: rua tekau ma taki
22: rua tekau ma rua
23: rua tekau ma toru
30: toru tekau
40: whā tekau
50: rima tekau
60: ono tekau
70: whitu tekau
80: waru tekau
90: iwa tekau
100: kotahi rau
200: rua rau
300: toru rau
1000: kotahi mano
2000: rua mano
1,000,000: kotahi miriona
1,000,000,000: kotahi piriona

Time

morning: ata
afternoon: ahiahi
night: maruāpō

Clock time

one o'clock AM: kotahi karaka i te ata
two o'clock AM: rua karaka i te ata
midday: poupoutanga o te rā
one o'clock PM: kotahi karaka i te ahiahi
two o'clock PM: rua karaka i te ahiahi

Duration

_____ day(s): _____ rā
_____ week(s): _____ wiki
_____ month(s): _____ marama
_____ year(s): _____ tau

Days

today: tēnei rā
yesterday: tērā rā
tomorrow: āpōpō

Monday: Rāhina / Mane
Tuesday: Rātū / Turei
Wednesday: Rāapa / Wenerei
Thursday: Rāpare / Taite
Friday: Rāmere / Paraire
Saturday: Rāhoroi / Hatarei
Sunday: Rātapu / Wiki

Months

January: Kohitātea / Hanuere
February: Hui-tanguru / Pēpuere
March: Poutū-te-rangi / Maehe
April: Pāenga-whāwhā / Āperira
May: Haratua / Mei
June: Pīpiri / Hune
July: Hōngongoi / Hūrae
August: Here-turi-kōkā / Ākuhata
September: Mahuru / Hepetema
October: Whiringa-ā-nuku / Ōketopa
November: Whiringa-ā-rangi / Noema
December: Hakihea / Tīhema

Writing times and dates

Time and dates in Māori follow the same order as New Zealand English, with the date first, the month second, and the year last.

Colours

black: pango
white: mā
grey: kiwikiwi
red: whero
blue: kikorangi
yellow: kōwhai
green: kākāriki
orange: parakaraka
purple: tawa
brown: pākākā

Transport

Directions

Where is _____?: Kei hea _____?
... the airport?: te taunga rererangi?
... the train station?: te teihana rerewē?
... the bus station?: te teihana pahi?

left: mauī
right: katau / matau
north: raki; tokerau
south: tonga
east: rāwhiti
west: hauāuru; uru

Eating and drinking

I'm a vegetarian.: He kaimanga ahau.
(careful with the vowel length - He kaimānga ahau means "I'm an invalid"!)
I don't eat pork.: Kaore he mīti poaka i te kai.
I don't eat beef.: Kaore he mīti kau i te kai.
breakfast: parakuihi
lunch: tina
dinner: hapa
I want _____.: He _____ aku hiahia.
chicken: mīti heihei
beef: mīti kau
fish: ika
ham: poaka whakapaoa
sausages: tōtiti
cheese: tīhi
eggs: huamanu / hēki
salad: huamata
(fresh) vegetables: huawhenua
(fresh) fruit: hua rākau
bread: parāoa
toast: tōhi
rice: raihi
beans: pīni
salt: tote
black pepper: pepa
sugar: huka
butter: pata
One (two) beer, please: Homai koa (e rua) he pia.
A cup of tea, please: Homai koa he kaputī.
wine (red/white): wāina (whero/mā)
coffee: kawhe
orange juice: wai ārani
milk: waiū / miraka
water: wai

Shopping

How much is it?: He aha te utu?
dollar: tāra
cent: hēneti

Place names

New Zealand: Aotearoa ("long white cloud")
North Island: Te Ika-a-Māui ("the fish of Māui")
South Island: Te Waipounamu ("the greenstone (jade) waters")'
Auckland: Tāmaki-makau-rau ("Tāmaki of a thousand lovers")
Hamilton: Kirikiriroa ("long stretch of gravel")
Rotorua: Te Rotorua-nui-a-Kahumatamamoe ("the second great lake of Kahumatamamoe")
Wellington: Te Whanganui-a-Tara ("the great harbour of Tara"); Te Upoko-o-te-Ika ("the head of the fish")
Christchurch: Ōtautahi ("of Tautahi")
Mount Cook: Aoraki ("cloud piercer")
Milford Sound: Piopiotahi ("one piopio [New Zealand thrush]")
Stewart Island: Rakiura ("glowing skies")
Australia: Ahitereiria ("Australia")
Sydney: Poihākena ("Port Jackson")
Melbourne: Poipiripi ("Port Philip")
Brisbane: Piripane ("Brisbane")
United Kingdom: Kīngitanga Kotahi ("One (i.e. United) Kingdom")
France: Wīwī ("oui, oui")

Glossary of Māori geographical terms translated into English

Knowing a little about these terms will help you to both pronounce the name and understand what it means.

ana: cave
awa: river, channel
hau: wind
iti: small
kai: food; however, if prefixing a verb, it's the agentive modifier (equivalent to English -er or -ist, e.g. mahi "to work", kaimahi "worker")
manga: stream (e.g. Mangawhio: in South Taranaki = blue duck stream)
maunga: mountain
moana: sea, large lake (e.g. Waikaremoana: in the western Hawke's Bay region = sea of rippling water)
motu: island
nga: the (plural form)
nui: big, great
one: beach, sand, soil
kohatu: rock
papa: flat
poto: short
puke: hill (e.g. Te Puke: in the Bay of Plenty region = the hill)
rangi: sky, heavens
roa: long
roto: lake (e.g. Rotoiti: in the Bay of Plenty region = small lake)
tai: tide, sea
tangi: weep, cry
tapu: sacred
tara: peak, ray of sunshine
te: the (singular form)
toka: rock
wera: burning, burnt
whanga: bay, harbour (e.g. Whanganui = big harbour)
whenua: land

Many place names^{[dead link]} have been made tautological by Europeans adding a word which is already contained in the Māori name (example: Mount Maunganui = "Mount big mountain"). However, there has been a trend for New Zealand English speakers to drop the English geographic qualifier and refer to many geographic features by their Māori names alone. Thus, Mount Ruapehu is often referred to simply as Ruapehu. In some cases, there has been a reversion to Māori names and outdated travel information may only use the old name. For example, Mount Egmont is now almost universally called Taranaki or Mount Taranaki and Mount Cook is now officially called Aoraki/Mount Cook; these are the original Māori names. In other cases the Māori name is followed by a pluralising s where the omitted English geographic term was plural. So the Rimutakas is used in place of the Rimutaka ranges. In conversation you may hear phrases like the Waikato or the Manawatu. In these cases the speaker is talking about either the river of that name or a district or region. For example, the Waikato will refer to either the Waikato river or the Waikato region, while Waikato (without the) would probably refer to the region, though this may need to be inferred from the context.

Learning more

“

Police are on the lookout for a man masquerading as a Māori language teacher. His students became suspicious when he said the Māori word for food was "takeaway"

”

—Billy T. James (1948-91), Māori entertainer and comedian

Māori is taught in many places around New Zealand, often as a night class. Ask at the local information centre or citizens advice bureau. The Māori Language Commission also has a list of course providers^{[dead link]}. There are also Māori television channels that you can watch to improve your listening skills.

This Māori phrasebook is a usable article. It explains pronunciation and the bare essentials of travel communication. An adventurous person could use this article, but please feel free to improve it by editing the page.