Hauraki, Matamata-Piako and Thames-Coromandel District Councils together developed the new app Te Kete o Te Tara. Image / Te Kete o Te Tara, Hauraki District Council
Hauraki, Matamata-Piako and Thames-Coromandel District Councils together developed the new app Te Kete o Te Tara. Image / Te Kete o Te Tara, Hauraki District Council
Three Waikato councils have joined forces for a special project to boost the use of te reo Māori and the understanding of te ao Māori in their area.
Hauraki District Council, alongside Thames-Coromandel and Matamata-Piako district councils, created a free cultural app centred on local knowledge of the traditional Māorirohe known as Te Tara-o-te-ika-a-Māui, the region that encompasses the three councils.
The app, called Te Kete o Te Tara, includes useful vocabulary and everyday phrases, mihimihi (introductions), waiata (songs), whakataukī (traditional proverbs), tikanga (customs) and local maps.
The project was led by Hauraki District Council iwi and Māori liaison officer Larn Wilkinson who says the app was originally created as a resource for council staff.
“We wanted to create a tool .... to help increase people’s use of te reo Māori ... [and] this app is really easy to use and interactive. It was designed for staff but anybody can download it,” Wilkinson says.
The app has been a long time coming for Wilkinson, who says work on the project started around the time the Covid-19 pandemic hit New Zealand.
Te Kete o Te Tara includes lots of local knowledge including maps, proverbs, waiata (songs) and useful vocabulary with pronounciation guides. Image / Te Kete o Te Tara, Hauraki District Council
Although Hauraki District Council will officially launch the app in line with Te Wiki o te Reo Māori (Māori Language Week) next month, people can already use it now.
Wilkinson says the app so far clocked up 276 downloads and received lots of positive feedback on social media.
