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Ake ake ake – A forever language

Ake ake ake – A forever language

We just celebrated Te Wiki te Reo Māori, an annual celebration for all New Zealanders to show their support for the Māori language, an official language of this country. Want to know what te reo Māori can teach us about nature? 

Māori are the indigenous people of Aotearoa New Zealand, and their culture has a deep and rich connection with the land. The te reo Māori kupu/words for native species and places can tell us a lot about them and give us a deeper understanding of the physical world around us.  

Like Danielle shares earlier in this newsletter, noticing nature allows us to be mindful and experience attention restoration, leading to many health benefits. The te reo Māori, kupu for native species can tell us about them and their behaviour—all of which are observed by noticing and being in tune with nature around us.  

For example: 

Tauhou

The kupu Māori for 'waxeye' or 'silvereye' means ‘stranger’ or ‘new arrival’ and refers to their late arrival to Aotearoa New Zealand. These manu/birds arrived here on their own which makes them a native species.  

Pīwakawaka

Pīwakawaka have over 25 te reo Māori names from various dialects. There are different names based on the various stages of their life and many different behaviours. Many of the names refer to the restless movement of this manu. Their in-flight dance, with sudden changes of direction, is designed to distract their prey as they hunt for food.  

Titipounamu

The name 'titipounamu' can translate to mean ‘mirage of pounamu/greenstone’ referring to the green colour of the upper plumage of the male bird. 

There are also many whakataukī/Māori proverbs and sayings in te reo Māori which use nature metaphors to reference ourselves and various situations. For example, the Māori phrase ‘kākā waha nui’ which means ’a big-mouthed parrot’ describes a loud, talkative person. Kākā can produce many different sounds, from gentle murmurs to the loudest conversations which we can now hear through Wellington city.

Often place names tell us more about what people, creatures, landmarks, and events have come before us. Place names can help us with our conservation mahi/work as well. As kākā return to Wellington, we might wonder where these parrots once lived before they disappeared due to habitat loss and introduced predators. A few years ago, through Zealandia and Victoria University of Wellington, a mātauranga Māori masters student researched how place names with the word ‘kākā’ related to historic kākā locations to see how we might be able to map where they once lived in the region. For example, Mt Kaukau was originally known as Tarikākā (meaning ‘where parrots rested’).  

As well as telling us what species might have been in an area, place names can also tell us about the history of an area. Karori, the suburb where Zealandia is based, is a shortened version of Kaharore. And Kaharore is also a shortened version of the original name Te Kaha o ngā Rore. The original name signals that this place was rich for bird snaring.  

When we use te reo Māori kupu correctly, they tell a rich history but when we shorten or mispronounce them, they mean nothing. 

Next time you visit Zealandia, pick up a copy of our Whānau Activity Booklet with some handy tips around pronunciation and kupu Māori that relate to nature. Keep an eye out for manu in the sanctuary and see if you can try and learn the te reo Māori name for them to get to know them a little bit better. If you need some help, you can check out our wildlife and botanical signs on your walk which are all bilingual.

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