Te Reo Māori

Māori

Austronesian (Polynesian)

FamilyAustronesian (Polynesian) Speakers~186K ScriptLatin CountriesNew Zealand Official inNew Zealand Vitalityvulnerable ISO 639-3mri

Also known as: Maori

Māori (te reo Māori) is an Eastern Polynesian language, the indigenous language of New Zealand (Aotearoa), with ~186K speakers (2018 census; ~50K daily fluent users + larger learner population). Co-official with English and New Zealand Sign Language under the 1987 Te Reo Māori Act, recognised as a treasure (taonga) protected by the 1840 Treaty of Waitangi. Linguistically Māori is closely related to Cook Islands Māori, Tahitian, and Hawaiian within the Eastern Polynesian branch — Polynesian voyagers reached New Zealand around 1250-1300 CE from East Polynesia. Latin orthography developed by missionaries from 1814, refined by the 1820 Williams primer; uses 5 vowels (a/e/i/o/u with macron-marked long forms ā/ē/ī/ō/ū) and 10 consonants. Verb-initial VSO order. Major revitalization since 1980s through kōhanga reo (language nest preschools, est. 1982), kura kaupapa Māori schools, Māori Television (2004), and the Māori Language Commission (Te Taura Whiri).

Where it is spoken

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87 core words in Māori

Water

wai

wai

Fire

ahi

ahi

Sun

rā

ɾaː

Moon

marama

maɾama

Star

whetū

ɸetuː

Night

pō

poː

Rain

ua

ua

Snow

hukarere

hukaɾeɾe

Wind

hau

hau

Earth

oneone

oneone

Stone

kōhatu

koːhatu

Mountain

maunga

mauŋa

Sea

moana

moana

Mother

whaea

ɸaea

Father

matua

matua

Daughter

tamāhine

tamaːhine

I

au

au

You

koe

koe

We

tātou / mātou

taːtou / maːtou

Name

ingoa

iŋoa

Person

tangata

taŋata

Head

upoko

upoko

Eye

karu

kaɾu

Ear

taringa

taɾiŋa

Nose

ihu

ihu

Mouth

waha

waha

Tooth

niho

niho

Tongue

arero

aɾeɾo

Hand

ringa

ɾiŋa

Foot

waewae

waewae

Heart

ngākau

ŋaːkau

Bone

kōiwi

koːiwi

Blood

toto

toto

Poop

tūtae

tuːtae

Love

aroha

aɾoha

Tree

rākau

ɾaːkau

Dog

kurī

kuɾiː

Cat

ngeru

ŋeɾu

Fish

ika

ika

Bird

manu

manu

Butterfly

pūrerehua

puːɾeɾehua

Egg

hēki

heːki

Bear

pea

pea

Horse

hōiho

hoːiho

House

whare

ɸaɾe

Milk

miraka

miɾaka

Honey

miere

mieɾe

Salt

tote

tote

Wine

wāina

waːina

Rice

raihi

ɾaihi

Chocolate

tiakarete

tiakaɾete

Iron

rino

ɾino

Wheel

wīra

wiːɾa

Silk

hiraka

hiɾaka

Book

pukapuka

pukapuka

Eat

kai

kai

Drink

inu

inu

Sleep

moe

moe

One

tahi

tahi

Two

rua

ɾua

Three

toru

toɾu

Four

whā

ɸaː

Five

rima

ɾima

Hundred

rau

ɾau

Hello

kia ora

kia oɾa

Thank you

ngā mihi

ŋaː mihi

Good

pai

pai

New

hou

hou

Red

whero

ɸeɾo

White

mā

maː

Black

mangu

maŋu

Green

kākāriki

kaːkaːɾiki

Blue

kahurangi

kahuɾaŋi

Cuckoo

koekoeā

koekoeaː

Woof

au au

au au

Computer

rorohiko

ɾoɾohiko

Wi-Fi

ahokore

ahokoɾe

Sushi

huhi

huhi

Tea

tī

tiː

Coffee

kawhe

kaɸe

Sugar

huka

huka

Orange

ārani

aːɾani

Ninety-nine

iwa tekau mā iwa

iwa tekau maː iwa

Sources

Words compared

Compared with languages in the same classification: Austronesian (Polynesian)

Meaning MāoriTuamotuanCook Islands MāoriRapanuiPukapukanTokelauanMarquesan
Water wai /wai/ vai /vai/ vai /vai/ vai /vai/ wai /wai/ vai /vai/ vai /vai/
Fire ahi /ahi/ ahi /ahi/ aʻi /aʔi/ ahi /ahi/ awi /awi/ afi /afi/ ahi /ahi/
Sun rā /ɾaː/ rā /raː/ rā /raː/ raʻā /ɾaʔaː/ la /la/ lā /laː/ ʻoumati /ʔoumati/
Moon marama /maɾama/ marama /marama/ marama /marama/ mahina /mahina/ malama /malama/ māhina /maːhina/ mahina /mahina/
Star whetū /ɸetuː/ fetū /fetuː/ etū /etuː/ hetuʻu /hetuʔu/ wetū /wetuː/ fetu /fetu/ fetuʻu /fetuʔu/
Night pō /poː/ pō /poː/ pō /poː/ pō /poː/ pō /poː/ pō /poː/ pō /poː/
Rain ua /ua/ ua /ua/ ua /ua/ ua /ua/ ua /ua/ ua /ua/ ua /ua/
Snow hukarere /hukaɾeɾe/ — kiona /kiona/ — kīona /kiːona/ kiona /kiona/ —
Page 1/11

Word order compared

Compare with major world languages

Māori
Kei te hiahia au ki te whakamātau i tētahi hūtu i kitea i tētahi toa i mua i te hōtēra
I want to try on a suit I saw ‌in a shop across from the hotel
Ich möchte einen Anzug anprobieren den ich in einem Geschäft gegenüber vom Hotel gesehen habe
मैं होटल के सामने एक दुकान में देखा सूट को पहनकर देखना चाहता हूँ
私は ホテルの 向かいの お店 で 見た スーツを 試着 したいです
我 想 试穿 酒店 对面的 商店 里 看到的 那套西装
أنا أريد أن أجرب بدلة رأيتها في محل مقابل الفندق
Я хочу примерить костюм который я увидел в магазине напротив отеля

Compare with languages in the same classification

Makemake au e hoʻāʻo i kahi kamaʻa aʻu i ʻike ai ma kahi hale kūʻai ma mua o ka hōkele
Māori
Kei te hiahia au ki te whakamātau i tētahi hūtu i kitea i tētahi toa i mua i te hōtēra
Ou te manaʻo e faʻataʻitaʻi se ofutino na ou vaʻaia i se faleoloa i luma o le faletalimalo
Gusto nako sulayan ang suit nga nakita nako sa tindahan atbang sa hotel
Au via vakatovolei e dua na ivakatagedegede ka au raica e na sitoa e na otela

Open the interactive map: Word Map · HanMap · Name Map · Word Order · Tree

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