Te Reo Essay

1554 Words4 Pages

Language development is imperative to cognitive growth, communication, survival and transmission of culture, values and traditions (Hemara, 2000). The language mirrors the realities and establishes belongingness to the group who uses the language (Karetu & Waite,1998). Aotearoa New Zealand’s tangata whenua, the Maori people, speak te reo, a language they considered a taonga (Hemara, 2000). Historical circumstances brought about many changes in the Maori way of life that caused the decline of the use and status of te reo. Ko te reo te hā te mauri o te māoritanga. When the nation loses its language, it loses it soul. The issue of the decline of the use and status of Te Reo is an issue deeply rooted in Aotearoa New Zealand’s history of colonisation that resonates to the present and will impact the future. It is an issue that needs to be look upon with utmost care and broad understanding in relation to bicultural development in the modern day and global Aotearoa New Zealand.
Formal education in Aoetaroa New Zealand began using Maori as the medium of instruction. It was widely used for socio-cultural and political interactions amongst the Maori people and between Maori and Pakeha (Hemara, 2000).The Maori society during the 1830’s were one in their belief system, culture and language. Te reo is their way of cultural immersion, transmission and integration (Hayward, 2004). When the Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840, Maori remained the language of the people, allowing the publication of the first Maori language newspaper. By the 1850’s the massive migration of the Pakeha exceeded the total population of the local Maori. The impact of colonosation took place. The signing of the treaty brought forth a change in the mind-setting o...

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