The Māori Language Act 1987 was a piece of

legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred to ...

passed by the

Parliament of New Zealand The New Zealand Parliament ( mi, Pāremata Aotearoa) is the unicameral legislature of New Zealand, consisting of the King of New Zealand (King-in-Parliament) and the New Zealand House of Representatives. The King is usually represented by hi ...

that gave

official language An official language is a language given supreme status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically the term "official language" does not refer to the language used by a people or country, but by its government (e.g. judiciary, ...

status to the Māori language (), and gave speakers a right to use it in legal settings such as courts. It also established the

Māori Language Commission The Māori Language Commission ( mi, Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori) is an autonomous Crown entity in New Zealand set up under the Māori Language Act 1987 with the following functions: # To initiate, develop, co-ordinate, review, advise upon, an ...

, initially called , to promote the language and provide advice on it. The law was enacted as the ''Maori Language Act 1987'' and originally written without macrons. The 1987 act was repealed by section 48 of the Māori Language Act 2016, however there were no major changes from the provisions of the old legislation and the 2016 act merely updated the 1987 law with new provisions and language.

Context

The act was the result of years of campaigning by Māori, particularly those involved in the

Māori protest movement The Māori protest movement is a broad indigenous-rights movement in New Zealand (). While there were a range of conflicts between Māori and European immigrants prior to the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, the signing provided a l ...

. It was also the result of shifts in thinking about the

Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the History of New Zealand, history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in ...

. By the mid-1980s, the treaty had acquired increased relevance thanks primarily to the

Waitangi Tribunal The Waitangi Tribunal (Māori: ''Te Rōpū Whakamana i te Tiriti o Waitangi'') is a New Zealand permanent commission of inquiry established under the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975. It is charged with investigating and making recommendations on cla ...

. The act was passed at least in part as a response to Waitangi Tribunal finding that the Māori language was a (treasure or valued possession) under the Treaty of Waitangi. The act also drew on a number of international precedents, primarily the Act 1978 of

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, which is cited several times in the legislation, but also the

Welsh Language Act 1967 The Welsh Language Act 1967, is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which gave some rights to use the Welsh language in legal proceedings in Wales (including Monmouthshire) and gave the relevant Minister the right to authorise the pro ...

of the United Kingdom, which enabled the use of the

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language of the Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province, Argentina). Historically, it has ...

in Welsh court proceedings. Despite the act, Māori does not have the same status under law as English. For example, tax records must be kept in English unless the Commissioner of Internal Revenue agrees otherwise.

1991 amendment

The act was amended in 1991 and legislated the Māori Language Commission's name change to . It also slightly expanded the range of legal settings in which Māori could be used, to include bodies such as the

Tenancy Tribunal A leasehold estate is an ownership of a temporary right to hold land or property in which a lessee or a tenant holds rights of real property by some form of title from a lessor or landlord. Although a tenant does hold rights to real property, a l ...

and any Commission of Inquiry.

Repeal by 2016 act

The 1987 act was repealed on 30 April 2016 by section 48 of Te Ture mō Te Reo Māori 2016 / Māori Language Act 2016, which updated the law. As a New Zealand first, there are two versions of the new act, one in Māori and the other in English, with section 12 stating that if there was any conflict in meaning between the two versions, the Māori version would prevail.

References

Bibliography

External links

Maori Language Act 1987 as enacted

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maori Language Act 1987 Treaty of Waitangi Māori politics Māori language 1987 in New Zealand law Statutes of New Zealand Language legislation Language revival