Ngā Tohutohu
Unlike the Māori terms for the days of the week which are nouns, the words for the months of the year are usually used in the same way as people’s names. The words most commonly used for the months of the year are:
| Hānuere |
January |
| Pēpuere |
February |
| Māehe |
March |
| Āperira |
April |
| Mei |
May |
| Hune |
June |
| Hūrae |
July |
| Ākuhata |
August |
| Hepetema |
September |
| Oketopa |
October |
| Noema |
November |
| Tīhema |
December |
These names are borrowed from English but are still commonly used. There are sets of traditional terms used for lunar months which varied from tribe to tribe, which could be one reason why these borrowed names have been preferred since early contact with English speakers. Traditional names for lunar months did not coincide exactly with these calendar months, perhaps another reason for the borrowed names. These traditional names have been reintroduced into the language, but for now we will use the names listed above.
In traditional times, each day of the lunar month had its own term. These are still used in Māori fishing and planting calendars (maramataka) which describe how suitable each day of the month is for various fishing and agricultural activities.
Here are some examples of how to use the terms for the months of the year.
Hei tauira:
| Ko tēhea marama tēnei? |
Which month is this? |
| Ko Noema tēnei. |
This is November. |
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| Ko tēhea rā o te tau tēnei? |
Which day of the month is this? |
| Ko te waru o Āperira tēnei. |
This is the 8th of April. |
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|
| Ā hea te huritau o Hone? |
When is John's birthday? |
| Ā te marama o Hepetema. |
In September. |
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| Ā te whitu o Pēpuere tīmata ai ngā kura. |
The schools start on the 7th of February. |
For further explanations and exercises see Te Kākano p 47.
Tirohia ngā kupu e whai ake nei. Whakatikahia ngā marama o te tau.
Look at the following words. Correct the months of the year.
