Te Hōhaieti o Te Reo Māori - The Māori Language Society

By Ngāurupā Davis (any/all) - Ngāti Kōpaki, Ngāti Manu, Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, China, Scotland, England

For many years, the student union building and the room which houses the Hunter Lounge have provided refuge for those who champion te reo Māori. And if you are thinking I’m referring to the refuge of waipiro and a fuzzy head, e kāo.

On 14 September 1972, the Māori language petition was delivered to parliament. Over 30,000 people vowed that the government, and the nation, must promote and revitalise te reo Māori. This led to 14 September being denoted as Te Rā o Te Reo. The following year, the first official Rā o Te Reo was held in the student union building, in the same room that the Hunter Lounge now occupies. There were whaikōrero, waiata, speeches, and discussions.

Te Rā o Te Reo, 1973.

Another year passed, and Te Rā o Te Reo grew into a full week in the year 1974. The first celebrations of Te Wiki o te Reo Māori were held in this very room once again. The understanding that te reo Māori is a taonga was growing in support and the room was full of students learning waiata reo Māori. 

Te Wiki o Te Reo, 1974.

As more time passed, the language stalwarts of Pōneke began to consider Māori language radio; Ngā Kaiwhakapūmau i Te Reo wanted the language to be heard across the nation. And so, during Te Wiki o te Reo Māoti 1983, the first radio programme entirely in te reo Māori was launched, ‘Te Reo o Pōneke.’ For 12 hours a day for the entirety of Te Wiki, one could listen to te reo Māori live on air. This was a first for Aotearoa. And where was this show broadcast from? You guessed it, the student union building. As time passed, this segment grew into the full-time radio station, Te Reo Irirangi O Te Upoko O Te Ika, in 1987.

Te Reo Irirangi o te Ūpoko o te Ika a Māui. From left: Mike Wills, Donald (Donny) King, Henare Kingi, Piripi Walker, Erana Hemmingsen (obscured), Mere Grant (standing), Lucy Te Moana (kneeling), Hirini Melbourne, Philip (Pip) Saffery, Henare Hetaraka (standing), Piripi Whaanga (kneeling), Murray Raihania, Kevin Hodges, Iris Te Ari Whaanga (sitting), Mahia Fuimaono (kneeling), and Huirangi Waikerepuru.

As time went by, the organising groups changed and their directions changed as well. Te Hōhaieti was put to rest and Te Tumu Herenga Waka had been built as the home-away-from-home for Māori students. However, when our marae was put to sleep in 2021, the need for a temporary shelter for Māori students arose once again. And so we returned to the student union building. We had the NT room, and just next door the Hunter Lounge hosted our many larger kaupapa. AGMs, pub quizzes, and debates were all once again hosted in the Hunter Lounge.

We are fortunate to have had the student union building be a nesting ground for so many efforts in the revitalisation of te reo, and the growth of so many kaupapa like Te Hōhaieti, Ngāi Tauira, Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori, and Māori language radio. Those who laid the foundations, and raised the walls, e kore e warewaretia. Nā koutou te reo i ora ai.