Pronunciation of Māori Letters
Māori Language Lessons
Te Reo Māori is relatively easy to pronounce as the way it is written is the way it is pronounced.
The modern Māori alphabet has 20 letters: A Ā E Ē H I Ī K M N O Ō P R T U Ū W NG and WH. (NG and WH are considered as one letter)
Māori Vowel Sounds
There are 5 vowel sounds in Māori:
| Māori Vowels: | Sounds like the underlined part of the English word |
|---|---|
| A | Are |
| E | There |
| I | Three |
| O | Or |
| U | Two |
If you know Spanish, the vowels have the same pronunciation as those in Spanish.
Vowels can be pronounced short or long.
In written form the long vowel is usually marked with a macron (a line above the letter).
- e.g. ā (long a sound)
This long vowel sound can change the meaning of a word in Māori. For example:
- wahine = woman (singular) - pronounced wahine
- wāhine = women (plural) - pronounced waahine
- manu = bird
- mānu = to float
Māori Consonant Sounds
| Consonant | Pronunciation |
|---|---|
| R | Is pronounced with a slight roll of the tongue. The tongue lightly touches the roof of the mouth once near the front. |
| WH | Is generally pronounced like an F (the top front teeth and bottom lip barely touch). |
| NG | The sound is similar to the middle ng in singing. |
| T | Somewhere between the sound of D and T in English pronunciation. |
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