Māori development minister Tama Potaka has offered his thanks to past and present “champions of te reo” Māori as Te Wiki o te Reo Māori gets underway.
“I’m joining New Zealanders across the country in celebrating this year’s Te Wiki o te Reo Māori – Māori Language Week, which has a big range of events running from 14 to 21 September,” Potaka said Saturday.
This year’s theme is ‘Ake ake ake – A Forever Language’, which arrives at a time when the coalition government’s deeds towards the language have drawn comparisons to those of a “drunken sailor” and a “bunch of dinosaurs” by Waitangi Tribunal claimant Ngāi Te Rangi, who filed an urgent claim just weeks into National’s new term.
“What we’re potentially worried about is the fact that having revived the language from where it was 50 years ago, we’re now seeing it being pushed back into those times again,” Ngāi Te Rangi Settlements Trust chair Charlie Tawhiao told RNZ in December.
“I think they’re a bunch of dinosaurs behaving as though it’s 1948.”
Despite this, Potaka highlighted his pride in the language as a “beating heart” of the country.
“At the recent Olympics, te reo Māori featured as part of our national bid in front of the world. Let’s take that pride in nationhood and keep it going into Te Wiki and beyond.
“Te reo Māori is the beating heart of Aotearoa New Zealand. The language is pumping with life and the many new terms also enable Māori speakers to express the everchanging world around them and continue to use Māori as a normal means of communication.
“It’s especially great to see so many Māori and New Zealand businesses celebrating te reo Māori. Welcoming te reo into the private sector brings the language to new audiences and spaces whether it’s retail, architectural, tourism, engineering or shearing industries.
“Over more than 30 years, Te Wiki has developed from a single Māori Language Day to a week of celebration for all New Zealanders.”
The minister acknowledged both the late king and new queen as part of his release.
“As announced on the ātea of Tūrangawaewae, this year’s Te Wiki o te Reo Māori is dedicated to the memory and contribution of beloved Kīngi Tuheitia Pootatau Te Wherowhero VII.
“We also acknowledge his daughter, Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po Pootatau Te Wherowhero VIII as the new leader of the Kīngitanga movement.”
Potaka said reo Māori champions have helped give life to the language.
“Thanks to the efforts of many who have gone before us, and champions of te reo today, te reo Māori is becoming more and more a part of every day life in New Zealand.”
He says he and his office staff are right behind the language at mahi.
“As part of my commitment, I speak te reo in Te Whare Pāremata (The House of Parliament), and in our office we have regular tikanga, waiata and reo sessions.”
Potaka encouraged everyone to give reo Māori a go.
“Whether you have an ancestral connection to the language or not, te reo Māori connects us all to this place.
“I encourage everyone to give te reo Māori a go, whether you know a little or a lot.”
The Waitangi Tribunal’s urgent inquiry into the Ngāi Te Rangi claim was heard in June.
The claim argues that the coalition government’s policy of prioritising Pākehā names and language in the public sector is causing significant, irreversible harm to te reo Māori.