Stacey Morrison podcast series: Get up to speed with te reo

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Up to Speed with Te Reo Māori is a special podcast series by NZME broadcaster and Te Reo advocate Stacey Morrison. The 10 episodes of short podcasts help get you up to speed with Māori language phrases and words that are often heard in media, public addresses and everyday conversations in Aotearoa, New Zealand.

Ko Stacey Morrison tōku ingoa. My name is Stacey Morrison and in this first kōnae ipurangi (podcast) episode, we look at greetings and farewells.

These are some of the words and phrases you'll hear on te reo irirangi – radio, pouaka whakaata – television, and often in hui – meetings.

Tēnā koe: means hello, speaking to just one person.

This a polite and formal greeting, and can also mean thank you. If meeting someone new at a hui, say "tēnā koe". If a co-worker brings a cup of coffee, you could say, "Tēnā koe!' Thanks!

Tēnā kōrua: means hello to two people.

Tena koutou: is a formal greeting to a group of three or more people.

You will hear Dr Ashley Bloomfield saying in his daily Covid briefings, "Tēnā koutou katoa", which means "greetings to you all". Katoa means all.

Sometimes you will hear "Tēnā tātou katoa". "Tātou" includes the speaker as well as the people being spoken to. "tēnā tātou katoa" means, "hello to us all".

Kia ora works in a similar way to tēnā koe, tēnā kōrua and tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou. It also means hello, and thank you, and is slightly more casual, but still acceptable in public settings.

Kia ora is fine on its own, but you can say Kia ora koe (although it's not as common) Kia ora kōrua – hello to two, and kia ora koutou, hello to three or more.

An exclamation of "kia ora"is also something we hear people saying if they agree with a statement. So if a speaker says "I think you all deserve a pay rise" you may hear from the listening crowd 'kia ora!" which means "I agree! So true!"

Here's another common greeting you'll be hearing in media: Mōrena - Mōrena, which means "Morning!"

As it is a transliteration, an adaptation of the English word 'morning – mōrena'. The same pattern of use described above can be applied to "mōrena" -- mōrena kōrua, good morning to two; mōrena koutou, good morning to three or more.

Another way of saying good morning is "ata mārie". In classrooms, teachers may say, "ata mārie, tamariki mā" – good morning children – and as kids do in every language, they'll reply "ata mārie, Whaea, Staceeeyyyy".

At the other end of the day, and often after the end of the TV news, you may hear this term: pō mārie – which means goodnight.

Another term you may have heard during covid lockdowns is: Kia haumaru te noho – kia haumaru te noho. Haumaru means "safe" and this phrase is a way to say "stay safe".

Each podcast is only 5-6 minutes long can be found on NZME's iHeart platform.