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===Description=== | ===Description=== | ||
There are three Official Languages Spoken in New Zealand: English, Maori, and as of April 2006 the New Zealand Sign Language became an official Language.<ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_New_Zealand]</ref> | There are three Official Languages Spoken in New Zealand: English, Maori, and as of April 2006 the New Zealand Sign Language became an official Language.<ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_New_Zealand]</ref> With the world moving from one place to another the New Zealand 2013 census indicated that at least an additional 35 languages are spoken to some extent.<ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_New_Zealand]</ref> | ||
Most records used in New Zealand research are written in English. To use and understand Maori records, it will be helpful to know some key words and phrases. | Most records used in New Zealand research are written in English. To use and understand Maori records, it will be helpful to know some key words and phrases. The Maori grammar may affect the way names appear in genealogical records. For example the names of your ancestors may vary from record to record in Maori. | ||
Maori oral pedigrees go from ancient times, down to the present time. The pedigrees are often written in the English alphabet but spelled phonetically, in the Maori language. | Maori oral pedigrees go from ancient times, down to the present time. The pedigrees are often written in the English alphabet but spelled phonetically, in the Maori language. | ||
===Word List (S)=== | ===Word List (S)=== | ||
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=====Māori===== | =====Māori===== | ||
The Māori language of the indigenous Māori people has been an official language by statute since 1987, with rights and obligations to use it defined by the Maori Language Act 1987. | The Māori language of the indigenous Māori people has been an official language by statute since 1987, with rights and obligations to use it defined by the Maori Language Act 1987. It can, for example, be used in legal settings, such as in court, but proceedings are recorded in English only, unless private arrangements are made and agreed by the judge. | ||
An Eastern Polynesian language, Māori is closely related to Tahitian and Cook Islands Māori. After the World War II, The Māori language was discouraged from being spoken in schools and workplaces and it existed as a community language only in a few remote areas. As a consequence of this, many Māori came to view te reo Māori as a language without purpose and chose not to teach their children. Since the 1970s, the language has undergone a process of revitalisation and is spoken by a larger number of people. Of the 148,395 people (3.7% of the total New Zealand population) who claimed they could hold a conversation in Māori in 2013, 84.5 percent identified as Māori. No adult Māori alive in New Zealand today does not also speak English. <ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_New_Zealand]</ref> | |||
*The Māori language is undergoing yet another change. <br> | |||
The New Maori script is a creation of Ian James. It is an alternative to the Roman alphabet normally used for the otherwise script-less Māori language of New Zealand. | |||
Part of the aim was to suggest a 'formal' or 'sacred' alphabet for the recording of special poems and songs, while maintaining a local aesthetic in the visual form. In the case of Māori - unlike some languages given it by missionaries - the Roman system is quite effective. So New Maori does not offer benefits of efficiency, simply those of cultural identity.<ref>[https://www.omniglot.com/conscripts/newmaori.php]</ref> | |||