So how do you pronounce the word Māori? Business Strategist | Personal Finance Coach | Writer. I’m also conscious of the fact that I cannot expect him to (nor does he claim to) speak for all members of his iwi, much less ALL Māori people. When it comes to pronouncing those long Māori words like Waitākere or Takaparawhau, Maunga Uika or Tāmaki Paenga Hira, this new app could become your new best friend. Welcome to PAEKUPU, words related to Te Marautanga o Aotearoa. Practice mode. In this workshop you will learn some easy steps to confidently pronounce any word in te reo! Opai is Te Pou’s strategic lead to help the mental health workforce agency’s engagement with Māori and an award-winning glossary Te Reo Hāpai that includes new words in te reo for the mental health, addictions and disability sectors. The eight consonants: h, k, m, n, p, r, t, w. The two digraphs (two letters that combine to form one sound): wh, ng. In my experience as a Māori language lecturer, I have encountered and understand the many difficulties that learners of Te Reo Māori face in learning a new language. about te reo Māori. There are 2 digraph (two letters that combine to form one sound) in Te Reo Māori. That said, at least we’re not working against a lifetime of bad pronunciation habits, as are the Pākehā (white) New Zealanders who care enough to try. Knowing this, and as someone who fully inhabits the world of words / language / metaphor, I’d like to do justice to te reo Māori as a way to honor the culture and the people who lived the longest in this place I now call home. Now you’ve got a handle on the basics of vowel sounds here’s a quick game to test your knowledge of some common words. Digital Desk + Analog Desk + Day Bed = My Ideal Creating Space, punishments for those who dared to speak it, adopted from one language and incorporated into another language without translation, Te reo Māori lesson 1: it’s not pronounced “may-OR-ee”, Using the Brahma Viharas to work with their near enemies, The Way It Is: a poem by William Stafford, A Beginner’s Guide to Uncle Roger: How to make egg fried rice, If your heart is breaking, I hope it’s breaking OPEN, On letting go of rules: words of wisdom from Devi Daly. Learn a little, use a little. I share what little I’ve gathered below not out of any sense of authority, but out a belief that comparing notes and having open conversations about these issues is one way to pay respect to the people who were here before I arrived. The prompts for New Zealand / British English speakers around the o sound are a little closer. Learning how to pronounce Māori words properly immediately shows respect for the language and the people, says Keri Opai of Te Pou. It is pronounced quite close to the sound of ‘l’ in English, with the tongue near the front of the mouth. x x x. Practice saying the words out loud, and think about which version is the correct one. Not all place names are included there, which is unfortunate given how frequently place names are mispronounced, but it’s quite thorough in terms of providing multiple meanings of any word, and you can choose whether you want to also view related idioms, phrases, proverbs, and loan words (which I only just discovered are words “adopted from one language and incorporated into another language without translation”). But read up on how to pronounce the “au” sound and the prompts always say “like ‘author’”, but that instruction only works for the New Zealand / British pronunciation of “author’; for people with American accents, a better prompt would be something like the o in “or” or “tore.” So Tau is pronounced something like “toe” for Americans, but really it’s more like “tore” if you cut the word short and didn’t pronounce the “r” at the end. (It’s still a very quick “o” sound, and a very quick tip-of-the-tongue-barely-hitting, rolled-r “d” sound.) Vodafone initiative enhances te reo Māori pronunciation on Google Maps. E ai ki ToitÅ« Te Whenua, he nohanga (he 'locality' rānei ki te reo Pākehā) he wāhi nohoia e te tangata, engari kāore anō kia tae te nui o te taupori ki. Pronunciation of te reo with 1 audio pronunciation and more for te reo. The most helpful te reo Māori resource I’ve found thus far is the online Māori dictionary, which includes recordings of native speakers saying the words so you can hear what they sound like. There will also be a place where students can place letters to learn the unique sounds that each vowel, vowel pair, or consonant vowel pair that make up words in Te Reo Māori. Within this section you will learn the basics of pronouncing Māori. t is pronounced more like ‘d’ than ‘t’, with the tip of the tongue slightly further back from the teeth wh counts as a consonant; the standard modern pronunciation is close to the ‘f’ sound. It’s definitely not pronounced “may-OR-ee”, and since learning how to say it more correctly, that Americanized version definitely makes me cringe. The trick to pronouncing Māori is correct vowel pronunciation. Throughout the website we use a macron such as ā to indicate a long vowel sound, this will be explained in more detail under the vowels section. The ‘wh’ digraph originally sounded like the ‘wh’ in ‘whisper’, but in most dialects has evolved to be more like the English ‘f’ sound. I’ve heard it claimed that some people appreciate it if you make any effort at all not to butcher a Māori word with the “colonizer” version, but I couldn’t seem to catch a break! They are: two digraphs (two letters that combine to form one sound): wh, ng. Learning pronunciation, a few words of greeting and a couple of choice phrases is a great way to wet the appetite. There are many barriers, obstacles, or mental blocks that people may experience when endeavouring to learn a new language. We acknowledge that there are a number of dialect differences that are not covered in this website or reflected in the video recordings that appear throughout Māori Language.net. The word ranked well above "Band 3" in its frequency in the Māori-language newspapers published between around 1840 and 1920, making the first of several hundred press appearances in Te Karere o Nui Tireni for 1 August 1842 (Vol. The correct pronunciation of Maori is Mah-aw-ree. Dictionary Collections Quiz Community Contribute Obsession with pronunciation killing te reo Māori - historian It doesn't mean I don't want to, just that I struggle - I don't get it, and I often can't do it right the first time around. A vowel can be long or short. 1, No. I’ve been wanting to share more of what I’m learning about Māori culture and language here, but haven’t felt comfortable doing so without first sharing a bit more context (hence this essay)… we’ll see what unfolds now that I’ve put this out there 🙂, Your email address will not be published. Depending on where the person you’re talking to is from, it can sound like “Mali” because of the way the r is rolled (that’s how Pat says it), or even a bit like “MAA-odie” if someone is pronouncing the o more. Launch Te ArapÅ« Speak Māori is a language learning system that is being developed by Scotty Morrison, Bradley Walker and Ben Carson that delivers accelerated learning of te reo Māori. If you would like to Donate you can do that by clicking below. Still, I do my best to split the difference between having enough of a sense of humor that I don’t just give up in exasperation, and taking the corrections to heart. A long sound is shown by a macron (a bar appearing over a vowel to indicate it is lengthened during pronunciation: e.g. The history of colonization here in New Zealand Aotearoa included, as it did in so many places, a prohibition on the local Māori language (also known as te reo Māori, which translates to “the Māori language”), complete with punishments for those who dared to speak it. Te reo Māori might have disappeared completely had it not been for the language revival efforts of Māori leaders in the eighties. You can use this basic knowledge to then correctly pronounce any Māori word or phrase. councillor Dalziel asked, after attempting to pronounce the te reo sentence. Click here (and then on the little speaker icon) to listen to a Māori speaker pronounce the word Māori correctly. Great you want to learn some words and phrases. These variations are found regionally throughout the country but do not prevent an understanding or use of the language. Te Reo Pronunciation skills. A beautiful bilingual hardback written initially in te reo Māori and translating Māori concepts as well as the words into te reo Pākehā. The ‘wh’ digraph originally sounded like the ‘wh’ in ‘whisper’, but in most dialects has evolved to be more like the English ‘f’ sound. [Breaking news: as I was about post this, the company we work for announced plans to introduce a te reo Māori course in  office!] Eventually Pat began bringing me Māori words and concepts relevant to our ongoing conversations about meditation and spirituality. Vowels. (Scott and I learned very early on that our first guesses at how a word might sound would always be wrong; knowing a bit of Spanish helped us roll the rs properly, but that was about it.) Combinations of vowels (diphthongs) are common , examples of dipthongs are; au, ao, ea, ia, ou, oa. Waitematā WIGH-te-mah-TAH; Taupo TAH-oo-PAW, or if you like, "tow-paw" Matatā mah-tah-TAH; Whangamatā fhah-ngah-mah-TAH; Manukau mah-noo-KAH-oo; Ngongotahā ngaw-ngaw-tah-HAH; Ōpōtiki AW-PAW-tee-kee; RangitÄ«kei rah-ngee-TEE-kay; Ōrewa AW-RAIR-wah; Paraparaumu purrah-purrah-oo-moo; Ōtāhuhu AW-TAH-hoo-hoo; Pāremoremo PAH-rem-aw-rem-aw; Porirua paw-ree-ROO-ah As an example, take Taupõ, a popular lake and tourist destination that a lot of people reaaalllllly want to call “TOW-” (as in “tower” or “ow!”) “poe” (as in Edgar Allen). Depending on where the person you’re talking to is from, it can sound like “Mali” because of the way the r is rolled (that’s how Pat says it), or even a bit like “MAA-odie” if someone is pronouncing the o more. The third sound is the “ng” sound in te reo. Pronunciation of Te Reo Māori. For further information about reo Māori pronunciation visit the Te Wiki o te Reo Māori website. And this ō syllable reveals another challenge for American-English speakers, and I’m finally getting to the lesson promised by the title: we’re used to a long accent on a vowel indicating the long vowel sound. Each vowel can be pronounced short or long. Learning to pronounce te reo Māori correctly is particularly challenging for speakers of American English, as the pronunciation guides are clearly designed with a New Zealand English accent (or at least a British one) in mind. Digraphs. Native Council help you communicate with Māori, Pacific and Asian audiences using Branding, TV, Video, Print, Web, Interactive, Email, Publishing, Apps and Social Media. The letters in the Māori alphabet are: The five vowels: a, e, i, o, u. Māori and Pacific Island Job Board, contains Māori Pacific focused employment opportunities. h, harakeke (flax) k, karu (eye) m, mā (white) n, namu (sandfly) p, parāoa (bread) r, rangi (sky, day) t, tama (boy) w, waka (canoe, means of transport) Consonents – Digraphs. Start with basic pronunciation to learn all the phonetic sounds in te reo (the Māori language). There are 15 distinct sounds within the Māori alphabet. Te ArapÅ«. While there are five vowels, combinations of vowels (diphthongs) are common. But saying “Toepaw” sounds a lot closer to the te reo if you speak it with a British accent; there’s not really an equivalent that I can think of for pronouncing ō in American English, other than a very condescending, fake “awww” when you don’t really feel sorry for the person. Te reo Māori will win new overseas listeners as a multi-national learning app launches in the Māori language. Have a go at using the kupu in this book – you’ll find words to use at home and in the garden, in nature, at school, and to describe your body. Pronunciation is as important as the words you use – with correct pronunciation comes the courage to speak! ‘ā’ as in motokā). Hinemoa is giving lessons on how to pronounce Te Reo Māori and runs games to help learn the Vowels and Consonants found in Te Reo Māori. There are 2 digraph (two letters that combine to form one sound) in Te Reo Māori. Orthographic conventions advise when a macron is used. Te Reo Māori is relatively easy to pronounce as the way it is written is the way it is pronounced. Not into a long read? The main reason why people get stuck on only using te reo for colours, numbers, greetings and commands is because they lack confidence in their pronunciation. Click to hear both variations pronounced. They say the ō “should sound like the “aw” part of “paw.” So Taupō sounds like “Toepaw.”. But that’s NOT what the macron accent (or tohutō) ā sounds like in te reo Māori! It’s more like the sound at the end of the word “sing”. If you break “sing” into individual sounds, they are s...i...ng. And so I have very much appreciated the opportunity to pick up a bit of this language at work, and in particular, from my boss Pat, a proud Māori who regularly mixes Māori words in with English when he speaks. More on the (mis)pronounciation of te reo: Don’t rock the boat: the real reason Radio Hauraki refuses to pronounce its own name right Record the pronunciation of this word in your own voice and play it to listen to how you have pronounced it. The important thing to remember is … We are entering test phase of our Speak Māori software and will look to launch full access to this in early 2018. We use a macron (a bar appearing over a vowel to indicate it is lengthened during pronunciation) to indicate a long vowel - ā, ē, ī, ō, ū. Following the life of a teacher, it shows tamariki how to emulate their tÅ«puna in being strong, generous, bold and compassionate as they follow the challenges and phases of life. It sounds more like a drawn out “aaah”, or more precisely, the o in “mom”. Curriculum areas presently available on PAEKUPU: Toi Ataata, Te Reo Matatini, Puoro, Te Reo Pāngarau, Te Reo PÅ«taiao, Ngā Mahi a te Rēhia, Hangarau, Tikanga ā-Iwi The ‘ng’ digraph is pronounced as it sounds in the English word ‘singer'. There are 5 vowels in Māori – a, e, i, o and u. In the meantime, Scotty Morrison in conjunction with Waatea has created a series of So an ā would sound like the a in “cake”. For further information about reo Māori pronunciation visit the Kōrero Māori website. Māori Tube is the place where you will find all the best videos to celebrate anything Māori from around the world. Digraphs. (It’s still a very quick “o” sound, and a very quick … Now match the correct spelling to that word. There are 10 consonant sounds in Te Reo Māori. The only complication is understanding where to place the stress in a word. There are 10 consonant sounds in Te Reo Māori. The word Maori means "ordinary" or "normal" in Maori language, which was used to indicate the difference between humans and deities or spirits. The Māori alphabet has fewer letters than the English alphabet. You should regard the set of vowel sounds as a much larger group than simply the five vowels themselves. The word Maori, alongside the word te reo, meaning "the language" are used to indicate the language spoken by the Maori people. Required fields are marked *. The “wh” sound is commonly pronounced as the “f” sound. At first, our relationship around te reo Māori consisted of him relentlessly correcting my attempts at proper pronunciation. The ‘ng’ digraph is pronounced as it sounds in the English word ‘singer'. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Your email address will not be published. As well as the words one would expect in a traditional dictionary, Te Aka has encyclopaedic entries including the names of plants and animals (especially native and endemic species), stars, planets and heavenly bodies, important Māori people, key ancestors of traditional narratives, tribal groups and ancestral canoes. I want to acknowledge the time he’s spent answering my questions about his culture and language; while he does appreciate my interest, I recognize that he’s doing form of labor that wasn’t explicitly offered to me as a perk of the job. Fortunately, there’s an easy fix! ng, ngahuru (autumn) wh, whānau (family) ... - Ko Koremoa he nohanga o Te Tai-tokerau. It feels important to preface this essay by saying that as inquisitive as I have been since moving here, I still have a very limited understanding of the complex and interwoven effects of colonization, the Waitangi Treaty, race relations, and increasing rates of immigration on the many different people who live here in New Zealand. Vowels are pronounced as follows: