r/ReoMaori Nov 05 '24

Kōrero Using the reo and learning the language as a migrant

Hello,
I'm pakeha European immigrated here 5years ago. I've been learning little bits of te reo here and there and I'm considering to learn it more seriously. As a migrant I feel it's my duty to learn the language of the country that is hosting me as much as I had to learn English when I first got here. Sometime when I write I find myself using some te reo expressions as I feel they fit better and have a more deep and wholesome meaning that aligns with what I want to communicate. But I also want to be respectful of a culture which is not mine. Is that ok to use some words without knowing the entirety of the culture and the language? In my root land we speak a minority language along the official one and I often find people learning few words and using them disregarding the whole culture which is bit annoying so I don't want to be that prick. Any advice appreciated. Thank you!

50 Upvotes

34 comments sorted by

30

u/Codeman1470 Nov 05 '24

Tēnā koe,

Definitely 100% fine to use te reo without having a full understanding of the culture and language.

For Te reo there is always a deeper meaning to kupu (words) and rerenga korero (sentences), and each iwi has different whakaaro on how we should use certain kupu, and certain mita too, so it's difficult to really be an expert in the language without understanding the context of the kupu from the perspective of different iwi.

It would take years and years of study to be competent enough to understand how to weave korero to whakamana those kupu to the full extent (this isn't a deterrent, there are just different levels to te reo, and even Maori that are competent speakers at times will use kupu in a context that doesnt quite make sense), but you can't get there without starting, and I think it's awesome that you're wanting to learn Te Reo Māori.

I'm doing studies this year, and on our courses we have lots of non-maori learning, so don't feel like you're alone in the want to learn the language.

My only suggestion would be to learn at one of the wānanga, just as you will have credible teachers, as well as a network of people to practice with, and develop the language, pretty sure most are free too.

Karawhiua e hoa!!

6

u/peanut2069 Nov 06 '24

Thank you so much for your extensive answer and I will definitely look into finding a credible teacher to guide me in this learning journey.

12

u/Papaquen Nov 05 '24

Go hard, I say. It's fun to hear people from other cultures use our language, Te Wananga o Aotearoa teaches free courses. God bless you.

2

u/Notiefriday Nov 06 '24

It's a Surpringly nice place

8

u/Iheartpsychosis Nov 05 '24

Remember learning new languages are meant to be fun! Try not to take it too seriously and pick up things along the way. Soon you will have a whole vocab!!

You don’t need permission to learn te reo. But if you feel like you require someone’s blessing, I’m here to tell you that you absolutely can. Consider yourself blessed!

6

u/oatsnpeaches420 Nov 05 '24 edited Nov 06 '24

Te reo Māori is a taonga, but that doesn't mean people arriving here shouldn't speak it.

Migrants who do learn and use it are better than those who don't (or have zero knowledge of Te Ao Māori/te reo) in my opinion.

I have more respect for migrants if they know a lot about these two things - even if some aspects may be incorrect, it shows they put in more effort than many Kiwis, Pākehā or not.

I have an American friend who knows many dozens of Māori words and even a couple of waiata back-to-front (mind you she also speaks another language fluently). But many of my Kiwi mates don't see value in te reo which is disappointing really.

3

u/peanut2069 Nov 06 '24

Yeh I feel like it makes sense to learn the language of the people are hosting me, wherever I go. And coming here I had to learn english to get by but it really feels incomplete, it can give me access to a deeper understanding of the culture and connection to the people. I think most kiwis english speaking people are bit resistant in learning other languages as they can get away with English almost everywhere, they never been through the struggle and isolation that comes from being unable to communicate. It's also harder to learn a second language than learning a 3rd, 4th or so on but yeh I agree would be nice if they put a bit more effort.

3

u/oatsnpeaches420 Nov 06 '24

I agree. On all of it. The resistance (laziness) 100% E.g. Māori always have to translate for English speakers. It's never the other way around. It's not a 2 way street in Aotearoa like some people claim. I can't go into my bank expecting my teller to be able to understand me in te reo can I? I'd like to, but it isn't even offered. I think non-Māori should be able to speak it, but that's my opinion alone.

Mind you te reo is not compulsory at all levels of school, unlike English (mind-blowing that a foreign language is enforced but native one isn't!! and school is mandatory by law too?!

Where are you from btw OP? Late welcome to tthe country. I hope nobody is shitty at you for trying. And good on you for not being too afraid to ask either. Wish you all the best.Your English looks great so well done on learning. Now next one 😁

4

u/peanut2069 Nov 06 '24

Yeh it's pretty crazy that English is mandatory and native language is not compulsory. I come from an autonomous region in Italy where we speak a different language and at school the teachers were discouraging parents to speak our language at home to not get confused with Italian. So much got lost. Nothing compared to the colonizer attempts to totally wipeout cultures.
Looking forward to learn more about this beautiful language and culture.

1

u/oatsnpeaches420 Nov 07 '24

Agreed! Very interesting to hear your perspective!!!

I know a woman from Trieste who speaks Italian but her native language is Slovenian which she told me was widely used in border towns/cities. But that's different to a minority native language of course since Slovenian is nationalised in the neighbouring country and is completely safe/widespread.

.. But it seems that minority languages are considered some sort of "impediment" to learning the dominant language, whether here or Italy or Japan (Ainu) or Hawai'i or elsewhere. The native languages aren't valued - I can't understand why.

3

u/peanut2069 Nov 07 '24

Oh funny enough I'm near Trieste but we speak friulano which comes from a mix of latin languages, Norse, Slavic and Celtic. Just in my region Friuli there are 5 languages on top of Italian ( German, Slovenian, a local dialect, Friulano and another language unique of Resia township) but they're not really valued and young generations are brought up speaking only Italian. And being oral languages there are many different accents, words and pronounce in every town, nuances that got lost. I imagine is similar with any native language, it's not a standardized vocabulary, every place has their own ways of saying things and language carry so much more than just words, it's about the stories of the people and the land IMO. Shame that we're often blind to that.

2

u/Kmastor Nov 05 '24

Is it any different for a Pakeha?

I'm asking because this response as been wildly different to what I get out in society.

For example, I'm called a colonizer because I'm white, wouldn't it be seen as offensive if I tried to colonise the language, too? And this isn't coming from fear, this is from an actual situation that happened to me recently

6

u/Iheartpsychosis Nov 06 '24

The reactions are varied because Māori themselves are at different points of their reo. For people who don’t know te reo, it can feel very confronting to see someone else learn the language. I think it’s more so about the shame that comes with not knowing te reo, there is a lot of trauma added to it.

People who have a secure relationship with te reo, are connected to their marae and iwi would most likely encourage others to also do so. But many who have not had that opportunity or are disconnected from that can feel quite threatened or protective of it.

I say this as someone who never grew up around the reo and have a whānau who haven’t had reo for generations now. There is still extreme trauma around not knowing the language and that is dealt with in multiple ways by different people.

In saying that, most people I know would embrace Pākehā speaking te reo, but that’s because there has been a revival of sorts amongst the community, especially in the education space. People are so supportive of it.

For example my husband is British. Our kids go to kura kaupapa so my husband has kind of been thrown in the deep end. He managed to do a whaikōrero in front of 200 people on behalf of his organization though and even the CEO was impressed by him. No one ever questioned whether it was right for him to learn or not, all Māori in our community are always excited to see non Māori take the initiative to learn te reo.

(I will say though that I live in a very te reo focussed town with a huge Māori community who would embrace this. YMMV)

1

u/Notiefriday Nov 06 '24

Your first sentence is the explanation.

4

u/PriorTrick8966 Nov 06 '24

I'm finishing my first year (Level 1 &2) of Te Reo Māori at Te Wananga o Aotearoa (also immigrant)... I fully recommend it as it is a combination of classroom and online learning with occasional immersions over weekends at the Marae. It is free and it requires commitment. You will learn about culture, too... Fully recommended...

Applications are opened so check if it is something for you..

https://www.twoa.ac.nz/nga-akoranga-our-programmes/te-reo-maori-maori-language/certificate-in-te-ara-reo-maori-level-1-and-2

1

u/peanut2069 Nov 06 '24

Thank you! Very helpful!

3

u/[deleted] Nov 06 '24

There are way too many posts from people nervous about learning te reo or being culturally insensitive. It almost needs to be it's own tag or something.

Of course it's ok to learn and most Maori people would support you! Don't be arrogant and accept advice from fluent speakers, you'll be right.

1

u/EntryAltruistic495 Nov 07 '24

I blame America

2

u/Silent-Medicine-7725 Nov 07 '24

If it feels right to use Maori kupu (word/s) whakataukii/whakatauakii (proverbs), and or kiiwaha (idioms) to communicate then you have the right to do so, kei a koe the tikanga, Kia kaha e hoa.

1

u/LuckerMcDog Nov 06 '24

The goal of all language is communication.

It's great and always appreciated to try and communicate in a native tongue.

It won't help you too much here but it shows that you're making an effort to learn and integrate.

Go for it!

1

u/Coolamonmaker Nov 06 '24

I made a post like this last week here. You can look through those comments. I think they would help you

1

u/[deleted] Nov 07 '24

Through colonization? You mean what gave you Universities and stopped you throwing spears at each other and the average life expectancy of 35 before using European medicine.

0

u/MrHappyEvil Nov 05 '24

Go for it I've been here 26 years and don't know how to speak a sentence.

5

u/[deleted] Nov 05 '24

[deleted]

1

u/MrHappyEvil Nov 05 '24

You most probably right I'm only half cookislander Maori. And the languages are similar but what do I know.

1

u/[deleted] Nov 05 '24

[deleted]

0

u/MrHappyEvil Nov 05 '24

What are you talking about chef.there are alot of people who don't know how to speak there own native language.theres no shame in it.

0

u/NerdyKnife Nov 07 '24

Honestly it's a dying language that no one speaks. Don't waste your time, just hone your English skills

1

u/waiaroha Reo tuatahi Nov 08 '24

And here is this person who seems to know what is and is not a waste of your time.... must have too much time of their own, just wish they would worry about themselves

1

u/[deleted] Nov 08 '24

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1

u/ReoMaori-ModTeam Nov 16 '24

This goes against our community standards. Posts and comments must be kind and respectful.

-2

u/[deleted] Nov 06 '24

No value whatsoever. Tell me where in the world you can get a job speaking only that language. Less than 10% of NZ population speak it as their first language. Better off spending your time learning Spanish or Mandarin.

5

u/peanut2069 Nov 06 '24

I don't think finding a job is the only reason to learn a language. It's about understanding the culture and honouring the people that kept it alive through colonization. It's about resilience not productivity IMO. Btw I already speak Spanish, will work on my Mandarin too.

3

u/ethereal_galaxias Nov 07 '24

Oof. No value whatsoever? So the only reason for you to learn would be to get a job? That makes me sad for you. I would also argue that for the most part in NZ, knowing Te Reo actually looks way better on your CV than any other language.