Greeting People In New Zealand: A Guide For Immigrants

For immigrants who are in New Zealand, one of the things that they have to get used to would be the language. This is how they will communicate with the locals and it is important that they understand how people talk in the country. But there is no need to worry, especially for those who are planning on moving to New Zealand soon. See, the language of the country is basically English but has been mixed with other languages so it should not be fairly difficult.

The New Zealand language

This language can be said to be quite unique on its own. Though majority of it is English, it has been highly influenced by some phrases and words from the Maori language. It also has a mix of some slang from Australia. Those who are in the country say that it is important for immigrants to be familiar with some words and phrases from the Maori language as these are incorporated in the language used in the country. Some of the places in the country are also from the Maori language so it would be a big help to be familiar with those.

Learning a bit of Maori

There are five vowel sounds that are used in the Maori language. These are a, e, i, o, and u. A is pronounced just like the a in ‘car’. E is pronounced like the e in ‘egg’. I is pronounced like the ee in ‘wee’. O is pronounced like the o in ‘four’. And u is pronounced like the o in ‘to’.

The language also has consonants – eight of them – which are used just like how they are used in the English language. These consonants are h, k, m, n, p, r, t, and w. There are also two more consonants that are different than how they are used in English – wh and ng. Wh is pronounced just like how ‘f’ is pronounced in English. As for ng, it sounds just like that in ‘wing’. However, in Maori, there are words than can start with this consonant.

Greetings in Maori

It is always a good thing to learn how to greet the locals in New Zealand. Most of the greetings are in Maori and it helps to learn that. The locals are often surprised when they meet immigrants who can greet them in the native language and it can be a good conversation starter.

• Hello – Kia ora
• Hello everyone – Kia ora tatou
• Greetings to you (to one person) – Tena koe
• Greetings to all – Tena koutou
• Welcome – Haere mai / Nau mai
• How’s it going? – Kei te pehea koe?
• Good – Kei te pai
• Really good – Tino pai
• Farewell / Goodbye – Haere ra / Ka kita ano
• See you later – Hei konei ra

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