Learning a new language is always exciting, and many times it is definitely a challenge. However, it is a very fun challenge in many people's opinion. When you are able to speak a new language at least at the conversational level, you open doors that maybe you had not known existed.
Being able to speak another language has a lot of benefits, from understanding a different culture and community, to being able to speak to other people who cannot or prefer not to speak in English.
When we talk about a second or third language many of us think about Spanish or Italian or maybe even Chinese.
However, here in New Zealand there is a very important language that many of us should do our best to learn, which is the language native to New Zealand, Te reo, which is the language of the Maori people.
Learning the Maori language provides many benefits to the population of New Zealand and to you as an individual.
If you are a Kiwi that wants to learn another language why not Maori? It is a great idea if you have already thought about it and want to go ahead with learning the language. Consider exploring Maori courses to get started on your learning journey.
However as you have surely learned a few words here and there or have seen some Maori written in public places in New Zealand, you can see that it doesn't really have much to do with the English language.
So does that make the Maori language difficult to learn?
Well, the answer to that question depends on you as a language learner and how much you really want to learn Te Reo.
There will be some parts of the language that may frustrate you, as well as some parts that you thought would be difficult that could actually be easier to learn than you first thought.
If you want some good tips and advice for learning the Maori language, as well as know what aspects are difficult, keep on reading.
Getting over some common barriers
Learning Te Reo you are going to run into some barriers that will add to the difficulty of learning this language. Some of these barriers aren't only those that come with the difficulty of the language, it's not just about how different the vocabulary or grammar is, it's also about your own mentality.
Some learners will want to completely immerse themselves in a language.
That means they have no problems putting themselves in positions where they are with native speakers of the language that they would like to learn and just try speaking.
However not everyone is so brave right away.
There are some mental barriers that you have to deal with as well, for example feeling nervous while speaking, not everyone can get in front of others and speak a completely different and new language without getting some type of stage fright.
At the end of the day if you really want to learn a language, including Te Reo you will put yourself in situations where you practice speaking, reading, and writing the Maori language as much as possible.
So how can you as a learner get over these barriers?
Find a Private Tutor to speak Te Reo
If you want to learn and speak Te Reo studying and speaking with a private tutor may just be the best way to do so. Alternatively, you might consider te reo Maori courses online for more flexible scheduling.
As someone who wants to seriously learn Te Reo, you will need to be actively searching for a private tutor, and not just any old tutor but someone who knows all there is to know about Te Reo and teaching the Maori language, maybe even a bit about the maori culture.
There is possibly no better platform to use for finding a te reo tutor than Superprof.
Using Superprof you can find a tutor that is either a native te reo speaker or a bilingual speaker. You can work with one of these tutors in a one to one setting or even taking online classes nowadays are quite popular.
Things a tutor can help you with
There are quite a few things that tutors can help you with that few others can, thanks to having the full attention of the tutor, you can work on and improve on aspects of your language learning much faster than if you were learning on your own or in a classroom with 10 to 15 other students.
Tutors can help you learn how to pronounce words in te reo much faster, as you will have someone who is an expert in the language there to correct all of your errors. Listening to them pronounce words will also help you to correct yourself at a faster pace.
Then of course, you do need to practice as much as possible.
There are other people you should practice with (which we will get to later) however a tutor should be a fantastic person to practice with as they can plan conversations with you that will help to advance your pronunciation of te reo words as well as your vocabulary and grammar.
Coming out of your shell
One of the largest barriers that do not have to do with the Maori language itself is your own feelings of self conscious when you are trying to speak a new language.
There are definitely ways to overcome this.
However it is something that holds people back. Some of the best ways to overcome this is to:
- Stick to your strengths (talk about topics you know)
- Speak with people you trust in your native language
- Don't wait to speak, enter a conversation as soon as possible
Language barriers between English and Te Reo
Now that you've read about how you can help yourself and professionals that can help you to learn te reo as quickly as possible, you should be aware about some of the difficult aspects of the language for native English speakers and European language speakers.
Pronunciation of words
New Zealand is quite far away from England, so the native language of the New Zealand islands obviously is completely different. One of the things te reo students have trouble with is of course the pronunciation, and ironically it can be because English is one of the languages with the most difficult pronunciation.
As a native speaker of English, you really don't realise just how difficult pronouncing words is for people who are native speakers of other languages.
Te reo Maori is considered one of the easiest languages to pronounce, as each letter in the language has a consistent pronunciation.
So in that sense you may have some trouble at first when you begin to learn te reo Maori as we are used to pronouncing words in an English manner, however once you get the hang of the pronunciation it will be so so easy.
If you have some knowledge of speaking Spanish or German which follow the same rules for pronunciation you will actually understand this rule faster.
In this case learning the pronunciation will be very simple.
Te Reo Maori Grammar
A fun fact, during World War II, soldiers from New Zealand used te reo Maori as code so that the enemy had no idea what they were saying.
Luckily a more lite version of te reo Maori is used today, which is much easier for native English speakers.
Learning the grammar of any language is arguably the most important part of speaking the language.
There are different particles you have to remember before the noun that will seem strange to English speakers, and then there are some that may seem more or less familiar.
The grammar is different, but after all it is patterns that you can understand and practice over time.
Te reo vocabulary
Learning vocabulary is where you will really need to practice speaking, as speaking practice will help you to remember vocabulary (as well as pronunciation) quicker than if you were just learning from a book.
There are basically no words that are similar between English and te reo Maori.
At least when you think about words that haven't made its way into New Zealand English.
In fact just about everyone, all over the world knows the world haka, thanks to the All Blacks.
Apart from the words we use now and then if you just repeat, repeat, repeat, and practice you will get the hang of the vocabulary.
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