Tōku Reo, Tōko Ohooho: Māori Language Petition 50th Anniversary Exhibition

An exhibition featuring the entire Te Petihana Reo Māori (the Māori language petition), presented to Parliament 50 years ago today, has opened at Te Puna Foundation Gallery in the National Library, Wellington.

On 14 September 1972, Te Petihana Reo Māori was presented to Parliament. The petition was led by rangatahi from Te Reo Māori Society, Ngā Tamatoa and the NZ Federation of Māori Students/Te Huinga Rangatahi o Aotearoa who wanted te reo Māori to be taught in all schools. More than 30,000 people from around the country – Māori and non-Māori – signed Te Petihana.

The exhibition name comes from the full whakataukī ‘Ko tōku reo tōku ohooho, ko tōku reo tōku māpihi maurea – My language is my awakening, my language is the window to my soul’. It features the petition, on loan from Archives New Zealand which cares for Te Petihana, with selected pages on display along with a digitised version.

Alexander Turnbull Library Curator Māori Paul Diamond and Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori researcher Sarah Brown selected the pages to display for the exhibition.

”Looking at the pages it was striking how many non-Māori signed,” says Mr Diamond.

“Even though September 1972 can seem like a different world to the 2022 of Māori language education and other initiatives, the coming together of Māori and non-Māori to support te reo Māori remains an inspiration for later generations.”

There are a number of photographs on display showing various moments around the country, over the years, significant to the development of te reo Māori as an official language.

The exhibition also features sculptures by artist and Ngā Tamatoa member Tame Iti that represent the many people who have fought for te reo Māori over the past 50 years. These sculptures are part of the provocative exhibition ‘I will not speak Māori’ on Wellington waterfront.

It will also feature a special gift to the Government being presented at the national commemoration at Parliament later today.

More information about the exhibition can be found here: Tōku reo, tōko ohooho: Māori language petition 50th anniversary exhibition | National Library of New Zealand (natlib.govt.nz)

The exhibition, which is free entry, is open until 3 December.

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