You are here
My language is my awakening
Finally, the Aussies have admitted we do something better than they do. Australian linguist Nathan John Albury has researched Kiwi attitudes to te reo Māori and found that we have ‘embraced and preserved the Māori culture and language far better than European Australians’.
This might seem like a case of ‘damned by faint praise’, since European Aussies have a notorious reputation for injustices to Aboriginal people. But when Albury undertook research to discover what Kiwi youth know about ‘reviving the Māori language and what future they think it should have in New Zealand’, he found something quite remarkable.
In a large scale survey, 83 per cent of Māori youth and 70 per cent of European/Pakeha youth ‘claimed that the Māori language must be saved because it is part of a shared, inter-ethnic, New Zealand identity. The vast majority also agreed that either Māori language should be made compulsory in schools for all New Zealand children or that the language should be taught more than it is and to a higher proficiency.’
Albury noted that New Zealand stands out for the way we incorporate Māori words into the English language, and assessed that te reo ‘holds a firm, treasured place in New Zealand society, culture and identity.’
With Kiwis taking part in Te Wiki o te Reo Māori (Māori Language Week), from 27 July to 2 August, Albury’s findings are both a celebration and a challenge. As younger generations grow up with respect and aroha for te reo Māori, it can only become stronger. Albury found that the majority of Kiwi youth believed they should speak te reo. ‘They called on the New Zealand prime minister to start using Māori language, and they asserted that language is a matter of public policy, not just something for Māori homes.’
The younger generations give us hope. But the fact that we still need a special week to advocate for te reo is a sign that we are not there yet. The horrific injustices toward Māori culture and language are not forgotten. By 1979, fewer than 100 children could speak Māori. Part of reclaiming Māoritanga—for all New Zealanders—is to acknowledge the atrocities of the past. And to commit to being part of healing the past by nurturing the taonga of the Māori language.
As we do so, Te Wiki o te Reo Māori can become a time of real celebration. I pray there will be a time when we all participate in and cherish te reo—that it is taught in schools and in homes. That Māori and Pakeha will discover a spirit of reconciliation by sharing the language. This is surely God’s work, and every step of grace we take towards each other will be a step towards healing and national wholeness.
In his commentary, Albury says, ‘The language is still endangered but New Zealanders are fighting to save it.’ For our nation, let us fight the good fight.
Ko taku reo taku ohooho, ko taku reo taku mapihi mauria: My language is my awakening, my language is the window to my soul.
by Ingrid Barratt (c) 'War Cry' magazine, 25 July 2015, pp3.
You can read 'War Cry' at your nearest Salvation Army church or centre, or subscribe through Salvationist Resources.