Karawhiti Taua! Deploy the Language Army!

Thursday, 12 July 2018, 8:14 pm
Press Release: Ngati Kahungunu

Karawhiti Taua!
Deploy the Language Army!

Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Inc. hosts third annual
Māori language revitalisation symposium,
Te Reo ki Tua!

Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Inc. is pleased to invite the nation to the third “Te reo ki tua! Ngāti Kahungunu Language Revitalisation Symposium”, being held on Thursday the 23rd and Friday the 24th of August at Clubs Hastings, Victoria Street, Hastings. Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Inc. is thrilled to host the third annual language revitalisation symposium, an initiative that has been developed to further enhance the Ngāti Kahungunu Māori Language Strategy which strives for te reo Māori along with the unique Ngāti Kahungunu dialectal variations to be successfully revitalised as a preferred language of communication by 2027. This initiative showcases some of the tribe's and nation’s most prolific language exponents who have worked tirelessly over decades to successfully revive the language within Aotearoa which was all but nearly decimated during the early 1900s. This symposium enlists an array of well-known personalities, both native speakers and second language learners, having made successful careers within the field.

The ultimate goal from this symposium is to raise awareness around the dire state of our language, and to inspire language champions who will in turn inspire others to learn, use and save the language. The array of speakers covers all facets of the world of language revitalisation, from kapa haka, to marae, to media, to the arts, to teaching, to bi-lingualism within communities, to raising children in a bi-lingual environment. This symposium is for anyone who is interested in hearing innovative ways of learning te reo, mastering te reo, promoting te reo, revitalising te reo and maintaining the zest required to raise native Māori speaking children. The symposium aims at inspiring the key language movers and shakers within the expanse of the Ngāti Kahungunu tribal region. The symposium will be fully bi-lingual to ensure that the message is received by all attendees.

The theme of this year’s symposium is: “Karawhiti taua! – Deploy the language army!”. This symposium showcases some of Ngāti Kahungunu’s and the nation’s leading experts in the field. This symposium aims to inspire language champions by hearing first-hand the trials and tribulations faced by those in the field of language revitalisation, showcasing their innovative methods aimed at the successful retention of the language.

It is hoped that this symposium will inspire others to continue the battle to save our language, and ultimately deploy an army of language champions.

Please note the registration cost is koha. Please register your interest at https://www.kahungunu.iwi.nz/te-reo-symposium

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