Ake ake ake – A Forever Language

By Engineering New Zealand 10 Sep 2026

Te Wiki o te Reo Māori is a time to celebrate te reo Māori and its place in everyday life across Aotearoa.

Te Wiki kicks off on Rāhina 14 o Hepetema (Monday 14 September), marking 54 years since the Māori Language Petition was presented to Parliament – and the 51st anniversary of the celebration.

This year’s focus, Te Reo Towns, celebrates the communities that keep te reo Māori alive and highlights the role we can all play in supporting it to flourish across Aotearoa.

For the engineering profession, it’s an opportunity to consider how we can incorporate te reo Māori into our mahi – from the way we welcome people and build relationships, to the language we use at mahi and in our hapori.

Celebrate with us

Every kōrero is an opportunity to strengthen our connection to Aotearoa and the hapori we help shape. Te Wiki is your chance to start, continue or strengthen your own te reo journey – whether that’s learning your first kupu, joining a waiata, using a mihi or building on what you already know.

Find a way to take part this week and carry it with you throughout the year.

Our commitment to incorporating te reo Māori

We’ve committed to using 18 kupu in place of their English equivalents in our communications with you – helping make te reo Māori a more natural part of how we communicate every day.

Get to know the kupu below and look out for them in our communications. Consider using them too as a simple and meaningful way to build your confidence and bring more te reo Māori into your everyday.

View our kupu commitment poster

Engineering New Zealand Te Ao Rangahau kupu commitment

Te reo	English definition
Te reo Kia ora	English definition Hello
Te reo Haere rā	English definition Goodbye
Te reo Mahi	English definition River, stream, gorge
Te reo Hui	English definition Gathering, meeting, seminar, conference
Te reo Kōrero	English definition Conversation, discussion or meeting
Te reo Motu	English definition Island, country, land
Te reo Aotearoa	English definition New Zealand
Te reo Whānau	English definition Extended family, family group, a familiar term of address to a number of people
Te reo Awa	English definition River, stream, gorge
Te reo Moana	English definition Sea
Te reo Kai	English definition Food
Te reo Wai	English definition Water
Te reo Waiata	English definition Song or chant
Te reo Tamariki	English definition Children
Te reo Hoa	English definition Friend, partner, spouse, ally
Te reo Tane/Tāne	English definition Man/men
Te reo Wahine/Wāhine	English definition Woman/women
Te reo Kaimahi	English definition Worker, employee, colleague, staff

Te reo Māori success in STEM

To ensure ākonga Māori (Māori students) feel represented in the industry, the Wonder Project, Engineering New Zealand’s free schools programme, is working to champion the use of te reo Māori across their kaupapa (programme).

The Wonder Project offer all non-pilot challenges in te reo Māori, including the Rocket, Power and Water Challenges, with Water Challenge learning material embedded in Mātauranga Māori and Western STEM. The rōpū have also committed to their own set of kupu Māori to use instead of English.

Whether it be in the classroom, in emails, or in everyday kōrero, Team Wonder are encouraged by the Wonder Project hapori willingness to honour their kupu commitment and celebrate te reo Māori within STEM learning.

The Wonder Project Rōpū kupu commitment

Te reo	English equivalent
Te reo Ākonga	English equivalent Student
Te reo Kaiako	English equivalent Teacher
Te reo Rōpū	English equivalent Team
Te reo Hapori	English equivalent Community
Te reo Kupu	English equivalent Word
Te reo Pātai	English equivalent Question
Te reo Mahi	English equivalent Work
Te reo Pānui	English equivalent Read
Te reo Kōrero	English equivalent Speak
Te reo Whakarongo	English equivalent Listen

How will you give te reo a go?

Whether it’s trying out a new greeting, sharing resources with your whānau or colleagues, or simply weaving a little more reo into your day – there are plenty of ways to give te reo Māori a go. Get started by trying out kupu like kōrero (conversation), kaipūkaha (engineer) and mātauranga (knowledge) – and follow along with the video below.

Give te reo a go

Further rauemi (resources):