Pepehā- questions and answers

Kia ora Whānau

Personal pepehā are a great way to introduce how to ask and answer questions in Te Reo Māori, because the answers come directly from pepehā!

Q: No hea koe? Where are you from?
A: No Hometown ahau. I am from Hometown (see pepehā!)

Q: No hea tō whānau? Where is your family from?
A: No Hometown taku whānau.

Q: Ko wai tō..... Who is your ....?
A: Ko .... taku .....

Ko name taku relationship
 
Q: Ko wai tō kura? Who is your school?
A: Ko Birchwood taku kura.
 
Ko wai tō whaea?
Ko wai tō matua?
Ko wai to iwi?
Ko wai tō kaiako?
Ko wai tō awa?
Ko wai tō waka?

As you can see, it's very easy to ask somebody about themselves. 


The only things to think about are:

1. In Te Ao Māori, it isn't polite to ask somebody their name. You're expected to ask somebody else the person's name, or introduce yourself.

2. Use 'no' for a place, 'ko' for a person, iwi, waka, etc.

3. Singular and plural superfuntime! If you are asking about teachers for instance, you would say:

Ko wai ō kaiako. 

Dropping the 't' shows plural. You'll see similar kōrero in answering in the Pepehā page.

4. Have fun and practise saying the words. Writing them down is all well and good, but students are going to learn faster and better if they can hear, say and see. 

Hope this is useful!

Ka kite

Damian Hardman
damian.hardman@birchwood.school.nz