Māori Language Week: Petition key player in revitalising reo Māori

Ngā Kaimahi o Te Whare Taiao o Rangitāne o Tamaki nui-ā-Rua. Photo / Nā Chelsea Wallace Photography

Hei kupu tuku iho mō tēnei reanga

An inherited language for the coming generations

Pērā i tēnā pito, i tēnā pito o te motu, tāmatemate ai te Reo Māori ki Tamaki nui-ā-Rua. He nui ngā take i pērā ai – te nuku ki ngā tāone nui, te matemate o ngā kaumātua Reo Māori, te kore tuku iho o te Reo Māori ki ngā reanga pūhou, te pēhitanga a ngā waiaro, a te ture, a te pōhewa hoki.

Nō te 14 o Hepetema i te tau 1972 ka whakatakoto a Ngā Tamatoa i te Petihana Reo Māori ki Pāremata. Koia rā te take e tū ai te Wiki o te Reo Māori ki te wiki e tū ai te 14 o Hepetema. Nā tēnei petihana i tīmata ai ngā hinonga whakarauora i te Reo Māori.

Tekau tau whai muri i te whakatakoto o te petihana, ka rea mai te kaupapa o Te Kōhanga Reo i te tau 1982. Ka huakina ngā tatau o ngā Kōhanga Reo o Taniwaka me Kapua o te Rangi Kōhanga Reo i te tau 1983. Ka huakina ngā tatau o Te Kōhanga Reo o Kaitoki i te tau 1985. Ka huakina Te Kōhanga Reo o Atawhai o Te Ahu-a-Tūranga-i-Mua Marae i te tau 1986.

Tekau tau whai muri i te reanga mai o Te Kōhanga Reo, ka puāwai mai a Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Tamaki Nui Ā Rua i te tau 1992. Āianei, e whā ngā Kōhanga Reo, kotahi te Kura Kaupapa Māori, e toru ngā kura tuarua auraki e whakaako ana i te Reo Māori ki Tamaki nui-ā-Rua nei.

Mō Te Wiki o te Reo Māori, ka whakahaere a Te Whare Taiao o Rangitāne i ētahi pātaitai tuihono i ia rā mā ngā pae pāhopori.

An inherited language for the coming generations

Hei kupu tuku iho mō tēnei reanga

Just as it was in all parts of the country, reo Māori was in dire straits in Tamaki nui-ā-Rua. There were many reasons for this – urban drift, reo Māori-speaking elders passing away, reo Māori not being passed down to younger generations and the attitudes and legislation of the time.

On September 14, 1972, Ngā Tamatoa presented the Māori Language Petition to Parliament. That is the reason that Te Wiki o te Reo Māori occurs during the week of September 14. This petition began the revitalisation initiatives for reo Māori.

Ten years after the petition, the kōhanga reo movement began. Te Kōhanga Reo o Taniwaka (Dannevirke) and Kapua o te Rangi Kōhanga Reo (Pahiatua) opened their doors in 1983. In 1985, Te Kōhanga Reo o Kaitoki started and Te Kōhanga Reo o Atawhai o Te Ahu-a-Tūranga-i-Mua Marae (Woodville) followed in 1986.

Ten years after the kōhanga reo movement began, Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Tamaki Nui Ā Rua opened. Today, there are four kōhanga reo, one kura kaupapa Māori, and three mainstream secondary schools (Tararua College, Dannevirke High School and Totara College of Accelerated Learning) teaching reo Māori in Tamaki nui-ā-Rua.

For Te Wiki o te Reo Māori, Te Whare Taiao o Rangitāne will be running daily quizzes through our Facebook and Instagram pages.