Nau mai, haere mai ki te kāinga rorohiko a Gavin. Ko te reo Māori te kaupapa me te Tiriti hoki. Nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

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Welcome, welcome to Gavin's homepage. The Maori language is the subject, with the Treaty also. Therefore, welcome, welcome, welcome everyone.

I have been studying Te Reo intermittently since 1997. This site is based on work I completed while studying evening classes of Te Reo (Māori Language) at school certificate level at Te Puna Wai o Waipapa or Hagley Community College in 1998. Additional information on this site is based on a two day workshop I attended on the Treaty of Waitangi, presented by Network Waitangi Ōtautahi, also in 1998.

In 1999 and 2000 I studied at Te Whare Runganga o Otautahi or Christchurch Polytechnic.

Before you begin, you might like to check out this introduction to some basic concepts of the Māori language, including a pronunciation guide and introductory grammar. Also, visit my collection of reo Māori sound files.

You can learn vocabulary and test yourself with the Java FlashCard Applet. It contains several vocabulary lists you can use to expand your knowledge of Te Reo Māori. You will need a Java capable browser.

Te Reo Projects

Projects completed as part of studying Te Reo:

1. Tōku Whānau - My Family. In this project I describe my family, giving basic details of people's relationship to me and perhaps some small detail about them, such as where they were born.
2. Tōku Kāinga Noho - My Home. This project was mostly oral and so only the introduction is recorded here.
3. Te Tao Hāngi - Instructions for a Hāngi (earth oven). This project was based on an example script supplied to students and hence I cannot present it here as an example of my work.
4. Te Kōrerorero - The Conversation. This is a prepared conversion on the subject of gathering seafood. Māori original and English Translation.
5. Culture. We had to prepare a small talk on some subject of Māori culture. I gave a brief description of the front of a Whare Whakairo - A Carved Meeting House. Vocab List.
6. Picture. We had to describe a picture given to us. This does not involve prepared work and so I cannot present an example here.

The Treaty of Waitangi

1. Pre-Treaty History of New Zealand, compiled by Network Waitangi Ōtautahi.
2. Declaration of Independence, 1835. Māori original and English translation.
3. The Treaty of Waitangi, 1840. English version. Māori version. English translation of the Māori version. Commentary from Network Waitangi Ōtautahi.
4. Locations and dates where the treaty was signed.
5. A 1869 translation of the English version of the Treaty into Māori.
6. Legislative violations of the Treaty, compiled by Network Waitangi Ōtautahi.
7. The Crown Apology to Ngai Tahu, in English and Māori.
8. Plastic Tiki and Other Nasty Things, an article from Broadsheet, 1983.

The New Zealand Anthem

This became topical with the rugby world cup of 1999, so here are the full English lyrics of God Defend New Zealand and the Māori lyrics of Aotearoa.

Links

Māori Organisations of New Zealand, including a useful page of Māori Language Resources.