Māori Language Week is coming to Kaikohe, with the community getting ready to celebrate te reo Māori and bring whānau together.
Kaikohe is one of four towns taking part in Te Reo Towns this year, a kaupapa established by Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori and Te Mātāwai to encourage the use of te reo Māori in communities.
The kaupapa is about giving people a chance to celebrate the language in ways that feel natural to them, while also creating more opportunities for te reo to be heard and spoken around town.
Kaikohe organiser Kīngi Rākete-Tāne says the event is also about creating something positive for the community.
After what he describes as a challenging couple of years for the town, the kaupapa was created as a way to bring people together, celebrate the community and create a sense of pride and mana.
Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori returns
“Nō te tūnga mai o te kaupapa nei, ka kite ake, ahau ake, he tino taonga tēnei hīkoi ki ngā whanaunga o te kainga nei,” says Rākete-Tāne.
The first year of Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori in Kaikohe saw close to 1,000 people turn out to support the kaupapa, showing the level of support for te reo Māori and events that bring the community together.
This year, celebrations will be held in Kaikohe on 16 September, with whānau preparing to come together for a day focused on te reo and the community.
Keeping te reo Māori flowing
For locals, keeping te reo alive is not just about special events. It can be seen in everyday moments, like parents, kaumātua and rangatahi speaking Māori with tamariki at places like the Kaikohe playground.
“Ehara i te mea e whakahīhī ana au, engari tēnei mea te kōrero Māori ia rā, ia rā, nō reira he taonga tuku iho noa iho tēnei e ū tonu ana i te rā nei,” says Rākete-Tāne.
A new part of this year’s celebrations will also combine two things that are a big part of life in Kaikohe, te reo Māori and rugby.
The community will host a rugby game played in te reo Māori, bringing the two together as part of the celebrations. The event is aimed at showing that te reo Māori can be used across all parts of everyday life, including sport.
“E rua nga taonga, ka nui te tata ki nga ngākau o nga whānau o te kainga nei, ko te reo kātahi, ko te whutupōro ka rua, ka whakamoea nga taonga e rua, ka puta ake he hua tino ataahua hei ko tāku,”
More than one day of celebrations
The Te Reo Towns kaupapa is supported through the Te Reo Towns Activation Fund, which provides funding to help communities create local activities that promote and encourage the use of te reo Māori. Four towns were eligible for funding: Kaikohe, Rotorua, Ōtautahi and Tūranga.
Kingi maintains that the kaupapa is about making te reo Māori part of everyday life, creating spaces where it is spoken, shared and celebrated, while bringing whānau and the wider community together.
