This site provides authoritative information on the Māori language of New Zealand.

The main focus is the structure of Māori, Māori language revitalization efforts and Māori-medium education.

In the past (before setting up this site in 2003) I contributed Māori information to other sites. Many of which quickly become out of date, contain errors and/or overly simplify things. For example, some websites mistakenly claim that digraphs are two letters that combine to form one sound This is not correct. A digraph is a two-letter combination that represents a single sound.

Brief Description of the Māori Language

Māori is an Austronesian language currently spoken in the central, eastern and northern regions of the North Island in New Zealand (NZ), and in most NZ urban centres as a result of Māori urbanisation.

About Māori Language

In the past (before setting up this site in 2003) I contributed Māori language information and corrections to other sites.

The Basics Māori Phonology

In modern phonetics, diphthongs are usually counted as separate vowels in addition to monophthongs (single vowels).

A Very Brief Annotated Working Bibliography on Māori Language Policy

There are two 2020 literature reviews on Māori language policy, undertaken for the Māori Language Commission by University of Auckland academics Tony Trinick, Stephen May and Ruth Lemon.

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    Site last updated 10 September 2024, NZST