The Health of the Maori Language in 2006 - Te Puni Kokiri

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FIGURE 2: CHANGES IN VALUES SEGMENTATION AMONGST NON-MÄORI ADULTS
80
70
60
Percentage (%)
50
40
30
20
2001
2006
10
0
Passive Supporters English only Uninterested
Segmentation
Source: Attitudes Survey 2000, Attitudes Survey 2006.
Figure 2 shows the changes amongst these groups between 2000 and 2006. The Passive Supporters
group increased over the six-year period. The English Only and Uninterested groups have both
decreased. As with Mäori respondents, a positive trend is emerging whereby the status of the
Mäori language has increased amongst non-Mäori since 2000.
Specific Shifts
There have been positive shifts among non-Mäori people in response to some specific value
statements about the Mäori culture in general, and in attitudes towards various aspects of Mäori
language acquisition and use.
New Zealand Identity and Mäori Culture
Table 2 shows that there has been a significant increase in support for the proposition that ‘Mäori
culture is part of everybody’s heritage’ among non-Mäori, from 59% to 69%. In addition, there
has been an increase in the proportion of non-Mäori who want to be involved in Mäori culture.
Language Acquisition and Use
There has been a significant increase in support for the use of the Mäori language in public among
non-Mäori, from 40% to 80%. In addition, there is increasing support for the idea that ‘all Mäori
should make an effort to learn Mäori’, with an increase of 6 percentage points from 2000 (51%) to
2006 (57%). However, non-Mäori remain unlikely to prioritise learning for themselves, with only
15% indicating that ‘learning Mäori is a high priority for me’.