Small efforts better than none

For seven of 365 days of the year, the nation focuses on te reo Māori. It could be seen as tokenism because the language is struggling to survive. I ngārāe whitu o ngārā e 365 o te tau, ka arotahi te motu ki te reo Māori Ka whakaarotia pea he ngutu kau noa iho, nā te mea e oke ana te reo kia ora ai.

But the week is for celebrating the language; it’s not the panacea. Every Kiwi speaking te reo Māori is the only solution.

Heoi, ko te whakanui i te reo te kaupapa o te wiki, kaua ko te rongoā mo ngā mate katoa. Kotahi anake te rongoā, arā ko te kōrero a ngā tāngata katoa o Aotearoa i te reo Māori.

At Stuff, we questioned if what we did this week is tokenism but went ahead with our plans because we believe it is important to support the revitalisation of te reo Māori, the language of this land.

Our focus this year is to make people aware by reclaiming te reo that we also reclaim Māori history and traditions. Across the country, historical place names are being reclaimed and with it comes the customary practices and experiences of Māori. By using more te reo we increase our understanding of Māori culture.

Palmerston North turns 150 years in 2021. To mark this, the Manawatū Standard, Hau Rewa Manawatū, has started its campaign with local iwi Rangitāne o Manawatū to rename The Square to the more historically significant Te Marae o Hine.

Ka 150 tau te pakeke o Papaioea hei te tau 2021. Hei tohu i tēnei tūāhuatanga, i tīmata a Hau Rewa Manawatū ki te kōkiri i tā rātou kaupapa i te taha o te iwi o te rohe, o Rangitāne o Manawatū ki te panoni i te ingoa o Te Tapawhā ki tētahi ingoa whai take ake nōroto i te hītori, ki Te Marae o Hine.

Stuff reporter Joel Maxwell took 18 months off work to learn te reo. For the first time, he’ll write his own week-long column in both languages.

I whakataā te kaituhi pūrongo o Puna, a Joel Maxwell, i te mahi mōngã marama tekau māwaru kiawāt ea a ii a kite ako it er eo Māori Hei tuatahitanga, ka tuhi ia i tāna ake tuhinga auau ki ngāreo e rua.

Maxwell reports academics can’t accurately assess the health of the language because there hasn’t been any significant te reo data since 2013.

Kua pūrongotia e Maxwellkāoree taea engā pūken gate arotake te orao te re on ātekorengao ngāra raungawhai ta keep āan ak it ereo ma ii te tau 2013.

We have renamed all of our national, regional and community papers, and homepage sections. The editors can use the new names at any time, not just for Māori Language Week.

I panoni mātouingā in go aongāniu pep a ā-motu, ā-rohe, ā-hapori hoki me ngā wāhanga o te whārangi ma tu ao te pae tukutuku. Eā he ian at ā ngāēt it awh aka mah iingā in go ahouingāwā ka to a,k au a no ai ho itewikio te reo.

There is more work to do to better represent the Māori community. Increasing our te reo Māori use is one way to help us do this.

He nui ake ngā mahi hei mahi e whai wāhi ake ai te hapori Māori, ko te whakanui ake i tā mātou whakamahi i te reo Māori tētahi huarahi hei āwh in ai am ātoukitepē rā.

Stuff will be one of many organisations that will celebrate Māori Language Week. Token or not, any effort to use the language, and pronounce Māori words correctly, is better than doing nothing at all.

Ko Puna tētahi o ngā whakahaere maha ka wh aka nu ii tewikiot er eo Māori. Ahakoakīia he ngutu kau, kāore rānei, māte aha i te whakapau kaha ki te whakamahi i te reo me te whakahua tika ingā kupu Māori, tēnā itekorei paku aha.

It’s not the panacea. Every Kiwi speaking te reo Ma¯ori is the only solution.