The History
What is Mahuru Māori?
Mahuru Māori is a great opportunity for everyone to speak te reo Māori. It doesn’t matter what your current level of Māori language may be, we encourage you to take up the challenge!
You’re fully in charge! Set your goals and intentions at the start of the month to a level you know is realistic for you. This could be in a number of different ways:
- greeting everyone in te reo Māori
- speaking only te reo for an hour a day
- speaking te reo for 2 hours a day every day
- speaking te reo for half the day every day
- speaking te reo every day for the whole month
We know for many participants it will take a conscious effort to stick to your reo Māori goals. But we hope you’re encouraged that you’re not alone in this challenge and together we all help to normalise the use of te reo Māori within our many communities.
Kia kaha!
Where to from here?
The goal for Mahuru Māori 2023 is to get more than 16,000 registered participants actively using te reo Māori during Mahuru (15 Sep to 14 Oct).
Over the years we’ve noticed a growing number of participants are beginners. To help support their commitment to Mahuru Māori we’ve set two new challenges specifically for them: to speak only te reo Māori for half an hour or, if you’re brave enough, for half the day, each day during the challenge.
You can help contribute to the success of Mahuru Māori and the revitalisation of the Māori language. Simply:
• Share what you know with others
• Take te reo Māori to your workplace and into the communities you are part of
• Encourage others to use and learn te reo Māori
• Pronounce Māori words correctly
• Learn a little, use a little
• Learn more, and use what you know
• Keep improving your language capabilities
• Encourage your friends and family to join you for Mahuru Māori 2023.
Get ready now! Register your participation in this year’s Mahuru Māori today. We’ll keep you updated with learning resources, Māori language events and supportive content to keep you on track to achieve your Māori language goal.
Guiding words
The purpose of the challenge is stick to te reo Māori. If you get a little silly and defame te reo Māori, and the kaupapa of Mahuru Māori, you will be asked to leave the group, so;
- Abide by the rules of Facebook
- Be kind and represent te ao Māori in a positive approachable manner
- If you feel people are getting frustrated be calm and don’t react
- Look after our reo, look after our kaupapa
- If you are in a position where you must speak English, then by all means, speak English.
