Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii
Note: This story contains te reo Māori quotations that have been translated.
As Aotearoa marks the 50th year of Te Wiki o te Reo Māori, around 3000 people showed their support for the language, marching in a hīkoi to celebrate in the capital.
The parade that made its way along Wellington's waterfront on Monday was largely made up of students from kura and kōhanga across the region who designed their own signs and banners and sang waiata as they passed through the city.
Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii
Louana Fruean and Cherish Paul were at the parade with their students from Katoa Kindergarten in Porirua, which is currently moving towards becoming a total immersion kindergarten.
"Kua kī te ngākau. Rawe, piwari," Fruean said.
My heart is full, it's awesome, beautiful.
"Āe he whakamana te wairua nā te mea ko tēnei te tau tuatahi i haere mai tēnei kinikātene o Katoa ki te tū ki te kaupapa arā ko Te Wiki o te reo Māori, nō reira āe he pai te manawa i tēnei wā," Paul added.
Yes, it's a celebration because this is the first year that Katoa Kindergarten has come to stand at Te Wiki o te reo Māori. So, yes, it's a good feeling at the moment.
Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii
It was great to see so many students be a part of the kaupapa on their own terms, Paul said.
"I love the fact that they're coming here on their own, because they have their own vision of how they see the future coming, it's speaking for our rangatahi and our mokopuna of tomorrow and of today, of course," she said.
"The future's in good hands," Fruean added.
Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii
Wainuiomata Intermediate School student Mihi Awa said the parade was a great event for Māori.
"E harikoa ana ahau mō tēnei rā, mō ngā kanohi Māori, mō ngā tangata kei kōnei, me tōku kura, mē ōku hoa."
I'm feeling good to be here today, to see all the people here, the Māori faces, and to be here with my school and my friends.
Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii
Tamati Waaka gave a mihi to all the schools that brought their students along on the parade to bask in the glow of te reo.
"Kua korakora, kua hihiko! He aha ai i te pāpōuri ahau inanahi nei i tērā tangihanga nui i te Tini Keke, ā nō reira koia nei te oranga ngākau te whakapiki wairua nui ko te kite i te Māori e hui tahi ana i runga i te whakaaro kotahi, me te rongo i te rere o te reo ā mai i tērā moka o Pōneke ki tēnei moka o Pōneke."
I'm feeling energetic, I'm feeling that spark, because I was feeling a bit down yesterday after the All Blacks lost at the Cake Tin, so this has lifted my spirits to see Māori coming together under one goal and to hear the language being spoken from that side of Wellington to this side of Wellington.
Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii
"Te wā i manakohia tēnei rā me kī i te paringa o te mate te reo i ētahi o ngā iwi, kua hoki mai, kua hoki kaha mai. Ētahi o ngā iwi i tata ngaro te reo nō reira ko aku wawata mō ngā rima tekau tau e tū mai nei ko ngā iwi e pakari tonu ana te reo kia pakari kē atu, kua hipahia ērā e ngā iwi ā e whai tonu nei i te reo i te hunga rānei e whai tonu nei i te reo. Koira ōku na wawata nui kia kaua e waiho ki te hunga tokoiti ki te whakaora i te reo engari mā te tokomaha."
When this week was established, the language was on the edge of extinction among some iwi, but it's come back. So my hopes for the next 50 years is for the iwi who are already strong in te reo to get even stronger, and for others following their language journey to overtake them. That's my hope, that it won't be left for the few to revive the language, but for the many.
Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii
Dr Carwyn Jones said it was a beautiful day and beautiful to see people of all ages celebrating te reo.
"We know it has been a kind of long journey of coming back from that point 50 years ago, where the reo was, people had been stopped speaking te reo.
"You know, people of my grandmother's generation at their school were stopped from speaking te reo. And you know, that means that in a whānau, it's a big loss of reo through the whānau."
There's still work to be done to ensure its future, but te reo is being heard much more frequently now, he said.
Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii
"It's a constant piece of work to do. But you look at the numbers of people we have here, and you look at the number of Pākehā as well who are filling our te reo Māori classes as well... Māori, Pākehā, see the value of te reo now.
Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii
"And no matter what the government does, that's not going to go away. You know, the government can do things that make things harder, but actually you can see now how many people want to be speaking te reo, want to be using it in all walks of life."
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