Nicole Titihuia Hawkins has been learning te reo Māori since she was 13. Now, as a māmā, she considers the future of te reo Māori for her whānau and offers a list of pukapuka that have helped her find the kupu.
When I was seven years old, my teacher made us journal our goals. I distinctly remember writing that when I grew up I wanted to be a Silver Fern, like Bernice Mene, I wanted to get my pen licence by the end of the term and by the time I turned 14 I would be fluent in te reo Māori. Little seven-year-old me knew I’d have the pen licence on lock and that being a Silver Fern was a lofty pursuit, but fluent in te reo Māori by 14? Completely doable. Ka aroha, seven-year-old me – turns out it would not be that simple.
I started learning te reo at Kāpiti College in 2001, under the patient shadow of Paora Trim. I was 13 by that time (gees girl, left it a little late to be fluent by 14!). This was my first real opportunity to learn te reo and tikanga Māori and I was able to grasp a solid base that would see me through to where I am now. After high school I took a gap year and started at Te Herenga Waka, thinking I could glide into a 100-level paper in Semester B and pick up my reo where I’d left it. Turns out the phrase, “use it or lose it” is on point and dear readers, I had lost it. Not the type of doom-and-gloom lost forever, more like the type of lost when you can’t find your keys or you know you have a copy of your birth certificate but for the life of you cannot find it anywhere.
Since then I’ve been a reo Māori learner. Despite taking a variety of night classes, a full immersion year at Te Wānanga o Raukawa and teaching basic introductory reo to high school juniors, I am still not anywhere near what most people would call fluent. I’ve come to accept that I may never be, but actually learning te reo is like one of those cringe Insta quotes that says: happiness is not a destination, it’s a way of life. There is no magical fluency destination that I will arrive at, because no matter how much language I acquire, there will always be something more for me to learn. Reo Māori is not a game of Crash Bandicoot that I can commit to for a short while, there are no culturally appropriative invincibility masks or end of game victory dances, while screaming “clocked it!”
I’m a Māmā now, and my pēpi will start Kōhanga Reo by the end of the year. If I do my job properly, it won’t be long before my daughter’s reo overtakes mine. Part of me desperately hopes I can keep up, but if I can’t I hope she leaves my reo in her dust and that the kupu flow from her tongue more freely than they have for me. The countdown is on to refresh, upskill and most importantly use the reo I already have. If I wait until my reo is perfect, I might never be able to kōrero Māori with my daughter. Tukuna tō reo kia rere.
The following pukapuka are in no particular order, they are books that are helping me find those misplaced kupu, sentence structures and ways of thinking. If learning te reo were a game, these pukapuka would be my cheat codes. They light the way, give me a boost and a base to come home to when the road feels weary. They never judge, no matter how many times I start over. I’ve included a range here of classics and new kids on the block. Don’t turn your nose up at my inclusion of books for tamariki, some of these are legit tricky and challenging for me and reading aloud to your whānau is a great way to practise pronunciation and intonations (and y’all know the pictures help!).
Mai i te kōpae ki te urupa, tātou ako tonu ai. Kia kaha i te reo Māori!
Tahi: Ki te Moe Aotearoa
Donovan Bixley’s illustrations and original story provide an incredible canvas, but it’s Darryn Joseph’s creative and unique Māori translation that make this reo version shine. Parts of this were challenging for me. We read this every night to our pēpi before bed and when I left our copy in Tāmaki recently, I surprised us all with how much I was able to retain from memory thanks to the genius rhyme scheme. An absolute delight.
Rua: Māori Made Easy
This whole range from everyone’s fav reo everywhere guy, is not to be missed. Uncle Scotty has made it easier than ever before to learn reo Māori at your own pace, wherever you are in the world. Activities are designed to take only half an hour a day and are supplemented with online resources. If you’re not Māori, I highly recommend giving these pukapuka a bang before adding your name to a free reo class wait list. Fun, differentiated and something the entire whānau can get into.
Toru: My first words in Māori
Any list with Uncle must also have Aunty Stacey! This pukapuka is pīwari rawa but don’t let that fool you into thinking it’s only for the tamariki. Complete with everyday household kupu and phrases, this is a great way to expand your vocabulary as a whole whānau. Dust off the ol’ Dymo or go nuts on Canva and design custom labels for everything in this book and keep your eyes out for the matching flash card set!
Whā: A Māori phrase a day
This is a solid guide book to conversational reo Māori in the modern world. Brought to us by Hemi Kelly, once a second language learner and now a Te Panekiretanga o Te Reo graduate and all round clever fulla. The pukapuka is broken down into themed sections, including all the usual suspects and other fun additions like I te pāparakauta (at the bar) and ngā whanaungatanga (relationships). I particularly love how with each phrase, variations are offered which makes this a keeper long after you have the first 365 phrases on lock!
Rima: Ngā Pēpeha a ngā Tīpuna
Tā Hirini Moko-Mead & Neil Grove’s pukapuka includes extensive (over 2,500!) whakataukī, whakatauākī and other kōrero, while remaining super accessible. You can explore kōrero by kaupapa or iwi, or key feature. No surprise as to why this book is so highly revered, it’s a classic, full of knowledge compiled over twenty years that should be on nightstands across the motu. Raid your Nannie’s bookcase or head to your fav library to check out this out of print stunner.
Ono: Te Kuia me te Pungawerewere
This famous pukapuka is written by Whaea Patricia Grace, illustrated by Whaea Robyn Kahukiwa and translated by Matua Hirini Melbourne – basically a divine tapatoru which invokes the imagery of all three of them combining their magical powers to bring us this book like a scene from Captain Planet. A lot of the sentence structures will be familiar to learners, and there are plenty of opportunities to apply them in real life contexts. Ātaahua in every way.
Whitu: He Iti Te Kupu: Māori Metaphors and Similes
A great investment for learners who need help with unpacking the poetry of te reo Māori. This bilingual pukapuka explains Māori metaphors and similes that are the building blocks of te reo. Although a kūmara doesn’t speak of its own sweetness, give this book a jam and I reckon you’ll be feeling pretty poho kererū with how much more you understand next time you’re listening to formal kōrero.
Waru: Taniwha
Penguin have released a bilingual version of Whaea Robyn Kahukiwa’s classic pukapuka, Taniwha, just in time for te wiki o te reo Māori. Although the language may appear simple, the ideas run deep and are exemplary of Māori ways of being, juxtaposed against the perception of tikanga by non-Māori. E oma, don’t walk to your nearest bookshop to grab a copy of this beautiful, nostalgic pukapuka!
Iwa: Ngā Mōteatea
This four part collection was collected by Tā Apirana Ngata over a 40 year period and translated by Pei Te Hurinui Jones. The book features translations, annotations and explanations of hundreds of traditional waiata. You’ll have to head to Koro’s place, or the library for these ones too, as they are out of print. The National Archives has copies including CDs, which feature audio recordings of some of the waiata. I have no doubt that our reo has resisted colonisation and erasure because of its oral nature, much of which is due to our songs.
Tekau: Kuwi & Friends Māori Picture Dictionary
Te Ao Māori Super Whaea, Pānia Papa has translated this stunning large, hardback book with Kat Quin’s ātaahua, whimsical illustrations and reo Pākehā. The categories for content are extensive, from all the usual suspects to weather and reptiles. This vibrant pukapuka makes a great gift. Papa and Quin have just released a variety of smaller, separate kaupapa board books. I hadn’t managed to thumb them over before this list went live but I’m super excited to get those sturdy copies too and keep my daughters hardback copy safe from teething pēpi hands.