About Us

What is the Māori Language Commssion?

The Māori Language Commission was set up under the Māori Language Act 1987 to promote the use of Māori as a living language and as an ordinary means of communication.

The Māori Language Act 1987

The Act came into force on 1 August 1987. It does three things:

• It declares the Māori Language to be an official language of New Zealand.
• In Courts of Law, Commissions of Inquiry and Tribunals, it confers the right to speak Māori to any member of the Court, any party, witness or counsel.
• It establishes Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori  (Māori Language Commission).

Who are we and what do we do?

We have a Board  of five members and a Chief Executive who reports to the Board. Our Board and Chief Executive are:

Our operations are divided into six groups:

Lexicography, Terminology and Research

The Dictionary team is responsible for developing Te Mātāpuna - the first monolingual Māori dictionary - and establishing and maintaining a lexical database. 

Māori Language Development & Standards

There are two teams working in this area. The Māori Language Services Team is responsible for developing language standards, for quality assurance, and training and certifying translators and interpreters. The Proficiency Team is responsible for the development and administration of sector specific  proficiency examinations. 

Māori Language Community Initiatives

The Mā Te Reo Fund administration team manages the Mā Te Reo Fund and distributes funding to support community-based Māori language initiatives.

Promotions

The Promotions team is responsible for all promotions and communications.

Policy

The Policy team provides advice to the Minister, State Sector agencies and educational institutes. 

Finance and Administration

The Finance and Administration team covers all aspects of financial management and general administrative support for the office. 

The Commission's Māori  Language Outcomes

Our Major Outcome is: 
Kia ora te reo Māori hei reo kōrero mo Aotearoa.
Māori  Language is a living national taonga for all New Zealanders.

We have Four Immediate Outcomes: 

INTERMEDIATE OUTCOME 1
Whānau,hapū and iwi strengthen and maitain their reo.

INTERMEDIATE OUTCOME 2
When people speak Māori they use the appropriate language in all environments. 

INTERMEDIATE OUTCOME 3
All New Zealanders value reo Māori and have the opportunity to become bilingual.

INTERMEDIATE OUTCOME 4
The Government provides for the equitable treatment of reo Māori.

The first intermediate outcome is about empowering iwi Māori to maintain and strengthen the reo in their communities. The second intermediate outcome is about maintaining and improving the quality of reo Māori, and realising its potential in the contemporary expression of Māori culture. The third intermediate outcome is about fostering positive attitudes towards reo Māori and increasing its use amongst all New Zealanders.  The final intermediate outcome is about increasing the number of situations and opportunities for reo Māori  to be used.

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