Te Reo Texting

Te Reo Texting.
Wharenui, whakapapa, koha, tikanga, mauri, wairua.

 

Words like these might have you fumbling for the Maori dictionary. Now you can turn to your cellphone instead.

 

Auckland businessman Grant Crawshay is using technology to make it even cooler to korero. He has created a text service that translates Maori words into English via text messaging.

 

The service was launched after Grant argued with a colleague over the meaning of the word koha. "We thought it should be easier than this to find the meaning of a word. Standard New Zealand dictionaries don't have Maori words in them and not many people have Maori dictionaries lying around," Grant says.

 

He hopes the service will give more New Zealanders access to the Maori language. "It is such a beautiful language. As a kid travelling around the countryside, it was great knowing that the Maori place names described the places we were going." Te Taurawhiri i Te Reo Maori, The Maori Language Commission, thinks the service is a great idea.

 

Wareko Te Angina of the commission says it puts the Maori language in the hands of anyone with a cellphone. Grant was concerned the service would use words that were unacceptable to Maori but Wareko says that the more people using Te Reo the better.

 

The dictionary database includes 100 of the most commonly used Maori words and Grant hopes to expand the service to include the whole Maori dictionary. "At the moment we just have the most common words but we really want to develop up the dictionary much further."

 

You can find the definition you need by text messaging a Maori word to 8888. The text message costs 20 cents and when you receive a reply you're charged 99 cents. The service also translates acronyms. If you text 'ROFL' to the same number, 8888, you will get back 'ROFL >> Roll on the floor laughing'.

 

Ka pai! E noho ra!
By Laura Bond

 

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