Jarrod Gilbert: Why we should all be speaking more te reo Māori

Students from Whangarei Girls High School led Whangarei's first Te Wiki o te Reo Māori parade. Photo / Michael Cunningham

OPINION

I am a brutaliser of the Māori language. My Pākehā tongue fails to adequately wrap around the words, and I tend to butcher them in creative and violent ways. I wasn’t brought up being exposed to much te reo, and so for the most part I find it difficult and frustrating. But I am baffled by recent attacks on incorporating more te reo into New Zealand society.

Politicians complaining about bilingual signs or Māori names are either the worst of us or simply appealing to the worst of us. And while I take some pleasure in nudging errant politicians, I figured that today I’d hold back on throwing stones and instead give the reasons why I think te reo is important and beneficial.

There is an argument to say that for vocational reasons, other languages are more important to learn than Māori, and in many instances that’s certainly true. But for occupations like mine and in which I lecture - criminal justice - engagement with Māori is vital. As I tell my students, understanding the Māori language is a massive advantage. I wish I had learned more as a youngster, when it’s far easier, because I would now be better at my job. Young people today, with the extra exposure to te reo, will be far better off in a number of different careers. And those Pākehā who know more te reo will be far, far more likely to be offered jobs in a number of areas.

Frankly, though, it isn’t about career progression as to why I believe the Māori language should be better promoted; it’s about creating a unique sense of New Zealand identity.

As is the case for many Kiwis, a number of Māori words have naturally entered my vocabulary. Kia ora is the obvious - that’s become my greeting of choice, but I will also go and have a kai, and will be visited by whānau.

Doing a haka overseas is a rite of passage for many Kiwis on their OEs - often drunk. Now, that may or may not be a bit iffy, but it does show how the Māori language - and, in this instance, custom, too - is taken on board and celebrated. That sets us apart, and it brings a unique sense of our part of the Pacific to the world.

I see a time in the near future when a hybrid Māori/English language emerges that becomes a language of all of us. It will be something that doesn’t divide Māori and non-Māori New Zealanders, but something that brings us together. It will define us not only at home but also around the world. At any time, we may just speak English, or just Māori, or any other language of people who live in New Zealand, but as one we will share a language that is universally ours.

And, at least in my experience, this is viewed in the same way I see it - as a very cool thing. The English documentary maker and actor, Ross Kemp, is a mate of mine. When we worked together overseas, he picked up on my very modest use of te reo, and began to respond to it. When he visited here, he began to use the words that I did, although he tended to butcher them even worse than I do. To this day when we speak on the phone I ask him about his whānau, and he answers as if I had used the word family. He doesn’t blink an eye. I asked him about this recently and he answered: it’s just the Kiwi way, isn’t it?

When he was twice here to work and play, he expected to experience te reo. Why would he not?

But leaving aside the practical element around certain careers, and the very cool element of creating a unique national identity, there is also a moral and legal obligation.

The Treaty of Waitangi and what it exactly means is a difficult proposition in many areas, and there is still much that needs to be debated and decided, but an acknowledgment of the need to preserve and promote te reo is surely the most elementary component. Māori have a right to their language and to see that expressed and promoted. It just so happens that in achieving that, I believe we will all benefit.

If you are one of the people railing against the use of te reo, and are unconvinced by any of my arguments, I rather fear no arguments will change your mind. So I say to you this: suck it up. This is going to happen, and the vast majority of us are happy about it, and you are going to find yourself bitter and fighting a battle you deserve to lose.

Incorporating the Māori language doesn’t take anything away, it only gives. I want to see more of it because it’s good for the country. And I say ka pai to that.

Dr Jarrod Gilbert is the Director of Independent Research Solutions and a sociologist at the University of Canterbury.