Stacey Morrison - Up to Speed with Te Reo, a special podcast

Astrophoto of Matariki star cluster. Photo /Stephen Chadwick

Up to Speed with Te Reo Māori is a special podcast series by NZME and Te Reo advocate Stacey Morrison. The series of 10 short podcasts helps get you up to speed with Māori language phrases and words that are often heard in media, public addresses and everyday conversations in Aotearoa, New Zealand.

Ko Stacey Morrison tōku ingoa. My name is Stacey Morrison, and episode 5 of Up to Speed with Te Reo kōnae ipurangi podcast, explores phrases of celebration you're likely to have heard in media, online, or in your daily life.

Stacey Morrison: Learn phrases and words that are often heard in media broadcasts, public addresses and everyday conversations. Photo / supplied

Happy birthday – Hari huritau!

Hari means happy and huritau is a term for "the turning of a year" - so, the anniversary of your birth. Sometimes people will say or write hari huringatau.

Rā whānau ki a koe is another way of saying, Happy birthday.

Rā whānau means day of birth and ki a koe means, to you. You may have heard television presenter Jenny-May Clarkson interviewing Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on her birthday. Clarkson added "e te Pirimia", which means Prime Minister. Hari huritau ki a koe, e te Pirimia -

Happy birthday to you, Prime Minister

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Image / 123RF

Meri Kirihimete

This is a transliteration, or Māori version of the English words Merry Christmas. Christmas isn't a Māori concept but at that time of the year, you may hear fluent speakers say, "Meri Kirihimete me ngā mihi o te tau hou" - Merry Christmas and greetings for the new year.

Matariki

Matariki is the Māori new year. You can say, "Ngā mihi o te tau hou" at that time too.

Mānawatia a Matariki

Mānawatia means "to welcome" - mānawatia a Matariki means "Welcome to Matariki".