GRAMMAR
OF THE
NEW ZEALAND LANGUAGE,

PREFACE.

The first edition of this Grammar having been for many years exhausted, and a considerable demand for some means of acquiring an accurate knowledge of the Maori language having recently arisen, the author has been induced to republish the work with such alterations as the attention which he has in the meantime given to the subject, during long labours of translation, has caused him to deem advisable.

Amongst the principal of these alterations is the omission of many passages exhibiting extreme niceties of the language, which, although useful to the finished scholar, were thought to be scarcely necessary to the ordinary student, and were complained of as embarrassing to the beginner.

The author begs to express his acknowledgments to his friend Mr. Fenton, late Resident Magistrate of Waikato, and one of the few who have studied the language grammatically, for carrying the present work through the press.

{v}

PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION.

Independently of minute and numerous subdivisions, it may, perhaps, be correct to state that there are spoken in this the northern island seven leading dialects, each more or less distinguished from the other—viz., 1st, the Rarawa, or that spoken to the northward of Kaitaia; 2nd, the Ngapuhi, or that spoken in that portion of the island as far south of Kaitaia as Point Rodney on the eastern coast, and Kaipara on the western; 3rd, the Waikato, or that spoken in the district lying between Point Rodney and Tauranga on the east, and Kaipara and Mokau on the west; 4th, that spoken in the Bay of Plenty; 5th, the dialect of the East Cape and its neighbourhood, in which, perhaps, may be included that of Rotorua, though in these two places many little differences might be detected; 6th, that spoken in the line of coast between Port Nicholson and {vi} Wanganui, though here, also, at least four distinct branches might be traced; 7th, and last, that spoken between Wanganui and Mokau. The dialect of Taupo may be, perhaps, considered a mixture of those of Rotorua and Waikato.

All these may be stated to bear to each other a remarkable radical affinity. Many words, it is true, may be found in one which are unknown in another; but the grammar of any will give a great insight into the texture of all.

The Waikato dialect is very generally known throughout the larger portion of the island. It has deeply tinctured that of Taupo, is well known at Tauranga and the Bay of Plenty, and has been carried to the summits of Taranaki by the multitudes whom its fierce warriors once dragged from thence in slavery, and whose chains have been since snapped by the power of the Gospel. Ngapuhi to the northward are well acquainted with it, from the number of slaves who had been fetched from thence by the warrior Hongi; and a little {vii} before his time it was carried to the neighbourhood of Port Nicholson by two large and distinct migrations—one by Ngatitoa, who were the original possessors of Kawhia, another by Ngatiraukawa, who formerly occupied Maungatautari, and as far as Taupo.

The four tribes also who now occupy the banks of the Thames resided, formerly, for a very long period, in Waikato, and, being sprung from the same stock, speak a language so similar that a critical ear can scarcely tell the difference between the dialects of the two people.[1]

The origin of this people,—what part of this island was first occupied,—whether it was not colonized by different migrations from different islands,—are points as yet buried in darkness.

That it was not occupied by merely one migration has ever been the opinion of {viii} the author since he heard of the different condition and habits of the people of the East Cape and those of Waikato. A survey of the different dialects will confirm the conjecture, and nowhere can we get a better illustration than at Taupo. For that magnificent lake, in the centre of the island, and the point of meeting for two parties, as they approach from either coast, presents also a remarkable diversity in the languages spoken on the eastern and western banks. On the eastern, the dialect corresponds closely with that of Rotorua, from which it is distant about a four days' journey; on the north-western, which is occupied by a remnant left by the Ngatiraukawa in their great migration to the southward, the dialect is remarkably similar to that spoken in Waikato.[2]

The points of similarity between the fundamental principles of the Hebrew language and those of Maori have been {ix} occasionally noticed: not, however, because the author entertains any opinion that the two languages can claim any direct relationship to each other. Upon this only would he insist, in reply to those who would bind him down to the model of some of the European grammars, that Maori, like Hebrew, is altogether different from those languages in structure; that every subject of scientific inquiry must have rules and an arrangement suited to its nature; and that, as it would be absurd to construct the English on the basis of the Latin, so would it be more out of course to think of finding in Maori declensions, conjugations, modes of comparison, &c., &c., as accurately defined, or conducted on the same principles, as those of languages so polished, and so adapted for expressing, as well the minutest varieties in thought, as the tenderest emotions of the feelings.

And here the author would acknowledge his obligations to Professor Lee for his theory of the Hebrew tenses. On no {x} other hypothesis can a satisfactory solution be given of the Maori tense.

The student is requested to notice that the remarks that are more suited to a beginner are printed in large type, and that matters which are of less importance to him are contained in the smaller. It will be, perhaps, most advisable for him to omit the perusal of the latter until he has mastered the former.

EXPLANATION OF ABBREVIATIONS.

• adj.—adjective.
• adv.—adverb.
• n.—noun.
• part. adj.—participial adjective.
• v.—verb.
• v. a.—verb active.
• vid. S.—denotes that further information will be found in the Syntax.

TABLE OF CONTENTS.

{1}

CHAPTER I.
OF THE
PRONUNCIATION OF MAORI.

THE LETTERS OF MAORI ARE AS FOLLOWS

OF THE SOUNDS OF THE VOWELS.

A.

Has three sounds; the slender, somewhat broader, and the full broad sound.

1. The slender, as in hat, pat.

2. The somewhat broader; as in mar, far, father.

3. The full broad; as in wall, hall, &c.

{2} The following is a list of words classified under these heads:

The second and third head differ but little from each other, and it sometimes may be difficult to decide under which of the two the sound should be classed.

The reader is requested to notice that the distinctions above made, are not founded so much on the length of the sound, as on the differences of the sounds themselves. If the length of the sound be considered, other classes, (at least two,) might easily be established; but the learner would, we fear, be more perplexed than benefitted by the addition.

The speaker should remember that in some compound words the last syllable of the first word, if it end in a, is pronounced strong; e. g.

• Patungā-poaka; place where pigs are killed. Ma-hingā-kai; a cultivation. Matā-pu; the lead of a gun, a bullet. Ta te tutuā tu; the plebeian's manners.

Note.—There are exceptions to this rule which it would be well for the student of observation to notice.

{3} In pronouncing such words as kata, mata, tata, the speaker must be careful not to slur over the first a, as if it were keta, meta, &c. It should be pronounced clearly and distinctly.

E

Is pronounced as a in bate, hate, &c., only not quite so slow, or so broad. Perhaps the final e in the French words café, felicité, would be a closer resemblance; e. g., koe, rea, re, kete, mate, tenei, rere.

(2.) As e in poetical, there; e. g., tena, renga-renga, kete, rere.

Few sounds in Maori are more frequently mis-pronounced by foreigners than e. Tohe, ngare, kumea, hoea mai te waka, te reinga, te rangi, rewera, korero, have been all so carelessly pronounced as to sound to the native ear as if spelt, tohi, ngari, kumia, hoia mai ti waka, to reinga, to rangi, Rewara, kororo. The reader should also be careful not to give e the dipthongal sound of ei; as in ne the interrogative particle, &c.

I

I is pronounced like the French i; as ee in sleep, green, &c.; when distinctly and fully pronounced it imparts much melodiousness to the sentence; e. g. ariki, kīki, to chatter, &c.

In the following it has a shorter sound: kĭki, crowded; mĭti, tĭti, &c.

N. B.—The speaker should be careful not to confound i with the Maori e; as in such words as wakatoi, hoi, &c.

O

Has a long and a short sound, a long; as toto, to drag.

A short; as toto, blood.

N. B.—We have no sound in Maori to correspond to the o in not, hot, pot, &c.

{4}U

This sound is also uniform in kind, and always corresponds to oo in book, &c. It sometimes, however, experiences a more quick, sometimes a more slow pronunciation.

The following table exhibits two variations beginning with the shorter:—

In pronouncing u the speaker will have to guard against the error of those who prefix the aspirate when no aspirate is admissible. According to them u, utu, &c., are pronounced as if spelt hu, hutu.

He will also have to beware of the more common and stubborn error of giving u the dipthongal sound of u in cube, tube, mute, &c.—tonu, ketu, tonutia, are, in this way, pronounced as if spelt toniu, toniutia, ketiu.

U, again, is sometimes, by careless speakers, confounded with o, and vice versâ. Thus ihu, nose; niho, tooth; have been erroneously pronounced as if spelt iho, nihu.

OF THE DIPTHONGS.

This portion of Maori literature has been as yet but little explored; and as each person's notions will vary with the acuteness of his ear, and the extent to which his judgment has been exercised, we may be prepared to expect a considerable discrepancy of opinion.

{5} We shall therefore proceed with caution, and offer only what may be most useful, and most necessary for the student.

The field of discussion may be much limited if we first define what we mean by the word "dipthong."

The best definition we can find, and the one most suited to the nature of the dipthong, is, we think, that of Mr Smith, in Walker. "A dipthong," he says, "I would define to be two simple vocal sounds uttered by one and the same emission of breath, and joined in such a manner that each loses a portion of its natural length; but from the junction produceth a compound sound equal in the time of pronouncing to either of them taken separately, and so making still but one syllable."

Following this definition, three tests for a dipthong suggest themselves.

1. The emission of the two sounds by the same breath.

2. Their amalgamation, or more correctly, their coalescing; for each vowel in the Maori dipthong is distinctly heard.

3. The abbreviation of the natural length of each simple sound.

In applying these rules to the dipthongs, it will be perhaps most prudent to divide them, under the present imperfect state of our knowledge, into two classes. 1. The certain, or those of the dipthongal character of which there can be but little question. 2. The doubtful, or those upon which inquirers may be likely to entertain different opinions.

The dipthongs which we consider certain, are as follows:

• aa, ae, ai, ao, au, ee, ei, ii, oo, ou, uu.

On these we will offer a few remarks.

Those dipthongs which are formed by a double letter, such as aa, are distinguished by a stronger and fuller sound; as in Wakaaro, rapuutu, &c.

{6}AE

Is a sound for which it is difficult to find a parallel in English, and which most speakers confound with ai in such words as waewae, waeroa, paewae, &c.

The English aye comes perhaps closer to it. It must be pronounced broad and open, and care must be taken to keep out the squeezed sound of the i.

AI

May be well represented by the i in shine.

AO

Has no representative in English that we are aware of. In pronouncing it, the speaker must be careful to let the o be distinctly, but not too prominently, heard; and considerable care will be required to keep it distinct from au in the following words, as otawhao, whawhao, tao, hao, &c.: neither again must the speaker divide the dipthong into two syllables, as some speakers do in otaota, &c.

AU

May be pronounced like ou in drought, trout, pound, &c.

EI

May be represented by the ai in hail, pail, &c. Care must be taken not to suppress altogether the i, as is sometimes done in such words as tenei, penei, &c.

OU

Is a sound of some difficulty. There is no sound that we are aware of in the English language that exactly corresponds to it. Low, sow, mow, &c., may be made to resemble it, by pronouncing them slowly, and letting the sound die away into u.

Most foreigners are apt to pronounce it as a simple o. The first syllable of koutou is one of very difficult pronunciation.{7} Without great care it will be variously pronounced, as if koitou, kotou, or kutu.

By not attending to these distinctions the speaker will often lose the benefit of a good thought. A speaker, guarding his hearers against spiritual temptations, borrowed his illustration from a poukaka (the perch for the parrot by which it is caught,) telling them that Satan often presents poukakas to attract them to ruin; unfortunately, however, instead of poukaka he used pokaka, a squall of wind and rain, and only expressed his point by exciting their risibility.

The doubtful class of dipthongs are au, (as in mau, for thee, tau, thy,) ai, (as in maia, brave) ea, eo, eu, io, iu.

On these we do not wish at present to make many observations. We believe that there is a considerable difference amongst Maori speakers respecting them. Our own idea is, that there may be a few occasions on which some might be considered dipthongs; and that those occasions are, the position of the syllable, whether at the end of the word, or elsewhere, as also whether it come under the influence of the accent.

We cannot dismiss this subject without mentioning two particulars, very necessary to be remembered by all who wish to attain to an accurate pronunciation of Maori. First, as it is in English, every sentence is to be pronounced as if one word. 2. Homogeneous vowels will, when they meet, almost always run into a dipthong.

The following sentence, koia i whiriwhiria ai e ia to ratou uri, would be thus pronounced by a native, koiai-whiri-whiriai-eia-to-ratouri. Koia ia i riri ai would run, koiai-aiririai.

This subject of homogeneous vowels coalescing into dipthongs, is one which has not received the attention it merits.

OF THE CONSONANTS.

H.

This is the same as the English h.

It is not however known on the western coast of New Zealand to the southward of Mokau, in the district of Taranaki. Its place is supplied by a curious stammer or jirk of the voice. A gentle sibilancy accompanies its pronunciation amongst Ngapuhi, which some speakers erroneously confound with sh.

{8}K.

K has the sound of the English k; as in kill, &c.

M. N. P.

M, N, P, have the same sound as in English.

R.

R has two sounds: (1) rough; as in rain, river, &c.; e. g., kahore, rorea, roro, roto.

(2) The second is more soft, and is formed by a gentle jar of the tongue against the palate; so gentle indeed is the vibration, that most foreigners pronounce it like d or l, as in raro, ruru, rimu, pouaru, pari, muri, mariri, koiri, korikori, kouru, maru.

T.

This is a letter which few Europeans pronounce correctly. It is not pronounced like the t in temper, tea, &c.; but rather like the sharp th of apathy, sympathy, Athens, apothecary. Those who watch a native's tongue while pronouncing this letter, will find that the rule for attaining this sound is, to apply the tongue, not to the root, but to the top of the teeth, and hardly emit a.

W.

Has two sounds, one simple, as that in wind, &c., e. g., wai, water, waka, a canoe, ware, a plebeian.

2. An aspirated w, as in when, where, &c.; whai, follow, whare, a house, &c.

NG.

The speaker should be careful, in uttering this sound not to separate the n from the g, as is sometimes done by foreigners. The n and g intimately coalesce, and those who have learned to pronounce the French encore will find no difficulty in catching it. The following rule will, we trust, help the beginner.

{9} Press the middle of the tongue to the roof of the mouth, near the throat, and simultaneously relax the pressure, and pronounce na. Of course care must be taken that the tip of the tongue does not touch the palate.[3]

Following is a table setting forth a few of the variations in pronunciation of the leading dialects of New Zealand.

It will be observed that the name of a place is employed to denote the dialect for which that place and its vicinity are remarkable.

See also the letters ng and h.

{10}

CHAPTER II.
OF THE ARTICLE.

§ 1. The articles in Maori are as follows:—

(a.) The definite article te and its plural nga; e. g.

• te tangata, the man.
• nga tangata, the men.

(b.) The indefinite articles he, tetahi, and its plural etahi; e. g.

• Sing. he maripi, a knife.
• Plur. he maripi ena? are those knives?
• te tahi maripi, a knife.
• e tahi maripi, knives.

(c.) The arthritic particles a and ko; e. g.

• a Hone, John.
• ko koe, you.

§ 2. Te is not so uniformly definite as the English the; being sometimes used;

(a.) Where no article would be employed in English, i. e., in cases where the noun is taken in its widest sense; e. g.

• I ma te kaipuke, went by ship.
• He kino te tutu, disobedience is sinful.
• Ko te rangi me te wenua e pahemo, Heaven and earth shall pass away.

(b.) Sometimes it is employed instead of the English a; e. g.

• He mea kaha te hoiho, a horse is a strong thing.
• {11} E kore te tangata tika e wehi i te mate, a virtuous man fears not death.

(c.) Sometimes it is used instead of the pronoun some; e. g.

• Kei tahaetia e te tangata, lest it should be stolen by some person; na te tangata noa atu, by some person or other.

(d.) It is employed for many other purposes which the English the does not recognize. We shall only mention the following;

• Te tini o te kaipuke, How many ships there are!

Note.—It has been asserted that te is sometimes used in the plural number, as in the preceding example, "te kaipuke," and in the following; te tini o te tangata, many men; ka reka te pititi, peaches are sweet.

We are more inclined to think that we have, in these examples, the operation of a figure of frequent occurrence in Maori, viz., synecdoche, and that one of a class is made to represent a whole class.

Expressions of this kind are common in English, without involving the plural number of the article; e. g., the fruit of the tree, a great many, a few men, &c. Bishop Lowth's remarks on these instances are quite to the point.

"The reason of it, he says, is manifest from the effect which the article has in these phrases; it means a small or great number, collectively taken, and therefore gives the idea of a whole, that is, of unity. Thus likewise, a hundred, a thousand is one whole number, an aggregate of many collectively taken; and therefore still retains the article a, though joined as an adjective to a plural substantive; as, a hundred years."

(e.) Lastly, te is sometimes employed before proper names; e. g.

• Te Puriri, Te Uira

Note 1.—To define the rule by which the article is prefixed or omitted before proper names is a work of some difficulty, usage being very irregular.

Note 2.—Sometimes te is blended with o into one word; as in the following example: ki to Hone ware, to the house of John, instead of ki te whare o Hone.

{12}

Note 3.—The student should be careful, in speaking, to distinguish between the article te, and the negative particle te. The latter should always be pronounced more distinctly and forcibly than the article.

§ 3. Nga may with strict propriety be called the plural of the definite article. There are a few exceptions, or rather slight variations, which we do not think it necessary to mention.

§ 4. He varies in some respects in its uses from the English a.

(a.) It is used sometimes where no article would be employed in English; e. g.

• A, ho atu ana e ratou he moni ki a ia, and they gave him money.

(b.) It is occasionally used in the same sense as some in English, e. g.,

• kawea he wai, fetch some water.

(c.) It is used in the plural number, e. g.

• He uwha kau aku poaka, my pigs are all females.
• He tini oku kainga, my farms are many.

§ 5. A great many uses of the indefinite article are shared by he with te tahi. We shall mention here a few of them.

• Ho mai te tahi maripi, give me a knife.
• Tahuna mai te tahi rama, kindle a light.

N.B.—Te tahi exactly corresponds with the definition given by Bishop Lowth of the English article a. "It determines it (the thing spoken of) to be one single thing of the kind, leaving it still uncertain which." A similar use of the numeral one we find in French, sometimes in Hebrew, and more than once in the New Testament; (vid. Mat. xxi. 19, and Mark xiv. 51.)

We need not look abroad for parallel instances; our indefinite article an being, as every etymologist is aware, the Saxon article, which signifies one.

(b.) Etahi may be considered as corresponding to the partitive article des of the French. It determines the {13}things spoken of to be any number of things of the kind, leaving it uncertain how many, or which, of the things they are. It closely resembles the adjective some of English, and we enumerate it here among the articles because it only differs from te tahi (which is clearly an article) in being its plural; e. g.

• Maku e tahi ika, give me some fish.

§ 6. A[4] is a regular attendant on the personal pronouns; e. g.

• a koe, you; ki a ia, to him.

(b.) It is also the article by which the names of individuals and tribes are always preceded; e. g.

• a Hone, kei a Hone with John; i a Ngapuhi.

(c.) A is also prefixed to the names of places, and to prepositions, and adverbs which have assumed the form of substantives, when in the nominative case; e. g.

• Kua horo a Pukerangiora, Pukerangiora (the fort) has been stormed. Kua tukua atu e ahau a Whangarei mo Hone, I have given Whangarei to John. Kua kainga a runga o nga puka nei, the tops of the cabbage have been eaten off.
• A hea? what place? A Rangitoto.

Note.—Sometimes a is prefixed to the name of the place when the people of the place, and not the place itself, are intended; e. g. ka mate i a Waikato, will be killed by Waikato.

Some speakers are often guilty of solecisms from not remembering that a is not prefixed to any of the oblique cases of the names of places. Thus we heard some old residents in the land say, Haere ki a Pokuru, Go to Pokuru. Haere ki a Waitemata, Go to Waitemata. According to this form Pokuru, and Waitemata are not places, but persons.

(d.) A is always prefixed to any inanimate thing to which a name has been given; i. e. to trees, canoes, ships, boats, meres,[5] guns, &c.; e. g.

• Kei te tua i a Ruhaia, he is cutting down (the tree) Ruhaia. E waihape ana a Karapaina, Columbine is tacking. Mo to tahaetanga i a Pahikoura for your having stolen (the mere[5]) Pahikoura.
• I toa ai a Hongi i whakawirinaki ia ki tana pu ki a Tanumia, Hongi was brave because he trusted in his gun Tanumia.

{16}

CHAPTER III.
OF THE NOUNS.

CLASSES OF NOUNS IN RESPECT TO ORIGIN.

Nouns in Maori may be comprised under three classes, primitive and derivative, and verbal.[8]

(a.) Nouns primitive are those which designate animals, plants, numbers, members of the animal body, some of the great objects of the natural world.

N.B.—It is often impossible to distinguish between primitive and derivative nouns.

(b.) Nouns derivative, which are altogether the most numerous, comprise,

1st. Nouns derived from verbs, i. e., the verb, in its simple form, used as a noun; e. g.,

• He noho noa iho taku, it is a simple sitting of mine; I have no fixed object in stopping (here.)
• He haere pai to haere? Is your going a good going, i. e., are you going with good intent?

(2.) Nouns derived from adjectives; e. g.,

• He aha te pai o tena mea? what is the worth of that thing?
• {17} Keihea te pakaru, where is the broken place?

(3.) Nouns derived from adverbs and prepositions, e. g.

• He kore rawa, it is nil.
• Engari a reira e pai ana, there (or that place) is better.
• Kua ki a roto, the inside is full.
• Parua a tua, coat the other side (with raupo.)

(4.) Compound Words. These are always formed by two words placed in immediate juxta-position, without any elision of either; e. g.

• Hia kai, (desire food) hunger; mate moe, (craving sleep), sleepiness; hoa riri, (angry friend), enemy; mahi atawhai, (cherishing act, &c.) a cherishing, &c.; kai whakaako, (one that teaches) a teacher; kai whakamarie, (one that pacifies) a pacifier; tangata atua, a man having a God; tangata pakeha, a man having a European to live with him; he hunga kainga, a people having a place to reside on; ahu taonga (bent on gain) avariciousness; ahu whenua, (having the mind occupied with the earth) industriousness, or peaceableness; whenua rangatira, (a noble land, not disturbed by invasions) peace; houhanga rongo, making peace; ngakau whakakake, pride; he whare kore, (a no house) homelessness; he horoi kore (a no soap) soaplessness; whakaaro kore, thoughtlessness, &c.

(c.) Verbal nouns are well worthy of the attention of the critical student. They are of very extensive uses in Maori, and a proper introduction of them will give animation and elegance to the sentence. The rules for their formation will be found hereafter. See verbs.

They are generally employed to denote time, place, object, means, or some accompaniment on, or relation of {18}the act, or quality of the ground form.—Other uses of them will be mentioned in the syntax.

To set forth the various uses of the verbal noun here would carry us beyond our limits. We shall therefore only give a few examples;—sufficient, however, we trust to lead the critical student into more extensive inquiry;

• Ko tona moenga tena, that is where he slept.
• Te pumautanga o te Whakaaro, the full assurance of hope; te whakangarungarunga o te wai, the troubling of the water.
• Te peheatenga i meatia ai, the manner in which it was done.
• Te patunga poaka, the place where the pigs are killed.
• Kahore aku kete kumara hei whakahokinga atu mo to puka, I have no basket of kumara with which to send back, (i. e., to pay for the loan of) your spade.
• I te hanganga o te ao, when the world was made.
• I ana inoinga, in his prayers, (i. e., when he prayed.)
• Ko tona kiteatanga tenei, this is the opportunity for looking for, or seeing, it.
• To tatou nuinga, the rest of our party.
• I taku oranga, while I live.

Note.—Instances will sometimes occur in which the simple root, or the verbal form, may be indifferently used in the sentence. The critical student, however, will generally be able to see the reason; e. g., te here o tona hu, the thong of his shoe; te herenga o tona hu, the holes, &c., by which the thong is fastened.

Proper Names should, perhaps, have been classed under the head of derivative nouns.

They are epithets arbitrarily assumed, as among the Hebrews, from some circumstance, quality, act, or thing. Sometimes they are simple; e. g., ko te Tawa, Tawa (a tree). Sometimes compound; e. g., Tangikai, cry {19}for food. They are generally known by a prefixed; when a is not prefixed, by the context.

OF GENDER, NUMBER, AND CASE.

Maori, we may premise, admits of no such thing as declension by inflection, i. e., by a variation of the ground form. All the relations, it is capable of expressing, are denoted by words, or particles, prefixed or post-fixed to the noun.

Gender of Nouns.—Distinctions of gender are but seldom recognized in Maori. Only two are ever noticed, viz., the masculine and feminine. These are always expressed by different words, e. g.

In salutation, the sex of the person is almost always denoted by the address, e. g.,

The distinction of sex in the other branches, is generally designated by tane and wahine postfixed to the relation; e. g.,

• hunaonga wahine, daughter-in-law.
• hungawai tane, father-in-law.

{21}Number.—Substantives in Maori have two numbers, singular and plural.

The singular is known by the singular articles te, and tetahi, or by one of the singular pronouns connected with the noun; e. g.

• Te whare o Hone, the house of John.
• Toku paraikete, my blanket.

The plural is known by (1) nga, e tahi, or (2) one of the plural or dual pronouns preceding the noun; e. g.

• nga wahine, the women.
• aku tupuna, my forefathers.

(3.) Sometimes the plural is designated by o, without te preceding the noun; e. g.

• kei o Hone matua pea, with John's uncles, perhaps.

(4.) In a few cases we meet with an alteration in the ground form; e. g.,

• Tamaiti, son; Tamariki, sons, or children.

(5.) In some trissyllables, the first syllable of the plural is pronounced long; as in matua, tupuna, wahine, tangata.

Note.—Examples of these two latter heads are not of frequent occurrence.

(6.) We frequently meet with ma joined to the proper name, in a sense corresponding to hoi amphi, and hoi peri in Greek, to denote the person and his company: e. g.,

• Kei a Kukutai ma, with Kukutai and his party.

(7.) Sometimes also ma is in the same sense postfixed to appellatives; e. g.,

• E mara ma! E hoa ma! E ko ma!

(8.) Sometimes an act oft repeated, or many things of the same kind are denoted by a reduplication of one or more syllables; e. g.,

• Kakata, a frequent laughing.
• Mamahi, over-work.
• Kimokimo, a winking of the eyes.

1. What is called the accusative case in Latin is most frequently denoted by i. This particle is different from the preposition i, and is only employed to denote the passing on of the action of the verb to the noun; e. g., Ko wai hei keri i te mara? who is to dig the field? (vid. prepositions i.)

2. The vocative case is always denoted by e; e. g., E Hone! O John!

{23}

CHAPTER IV.
OF THE ADJECTIVE.

Maori adjectives have no peculiar or appropriate form. They know no distinction of gender, number, case, or comparison.

In common with substantives, adjectives admit often of reduplication to denote repetition, or many things the same kind, &c.—vid. ch. 3, number § 8., e. g.

• Mahi kakata, a frequent laughing.
• He rakau kikino kau, they are all bad trees.

Note.—Comparison in Maori is formed by periphrasis, for which vid. S.

{24}

CHAPTER V.
OF THE NUMERALS.

Numerals in Maori abound in distinctions that are not to be met with in other languages.

Tahi, one, has sometimes a form peculiar to itself, being prefixed by ko. All between tahi and tekau may be prefixed by e. All the simple numbers, i. e. all less than ten, will, when preceding the higher numbers, take their ordinary prefixes; e. g.

• E rua, two—e rua rau, two hundred.
• Ka toru, three—ka toru nga rau, three hundred, or it is 300.
• Kia wha, let it be four—kia wha mano, let it be four thousand &c.
• Ka rima five,—ka rima mano, five thousand, &c.
• Ka rima tekau, fifty, &c., &c., &c.

Numbers between ten and twenty are expressed by ten and unit; e. g.

• E ono, six,—tekau ma ono (ten and six) sixteen.
• E whitu, seven,—tekau ma whitu, seventeen.

Twenty, and all numbers between twenty and a hundred, may be expressed in two ways:

1st, (which is now the more general,) by a unit preceding ten; e. g., e ono tekau, (six tens) sixty; ka iwa tekau, ninety, &c.

2ndly, by hoko prefixed to the unit; e. g., hokorua twenty.

{25} Note.—The Maori mode of counting has always, heretofore, been by pairs: thus hokorua, twenty, stands for twenty pair, i. e. forty, and so on. When they wish it to be understood singly they postfix taki-taki to the numeral adjective; e. g., hokorua taki-taki, twenty. Sometimes topu, or pu, is postfixed to make it more clear that the double of the number is intended; e. g., e waru topu, (eight doubled) sixteen.

Ngahuru, with Ngapuhi, denotes ten, and tekau, eleven. In this, the central part of the island, as far as Taupo, ngahuru and tekau represent both of them ten.

In expressing a sum of tens and units, the smaller number follows ten or its multiple, and is connected with it by the numeral conjunction ma; e. g., thirty-four is denoted by "e toru tekau ma wha."

In expressing a sum of hundreds, with tens and units, the tens are postfixed to the hundreds without a ma intervening; e. g., 136 is expressed by "ko tahi rau, e toru tekau, ma ono."

A sum of thousands, hundreds, tens and units, is expressed in the same way, the particle ma only intervening between the ten and the unit; e. g., 1136 is expressed by "ko tahi mano, ko tahi rau, e toru tekau, ma ono."

{26}For denoting a number of persons less than ten, toko is generally prefixed to the numeral; e. g.,

• tokowhitu tatou, we are seven in number.

For denoting distribution tātaki is prefixed to the numeral; kia tātaki rua pu nga utu i te tangata, let each man have four payments.

Note.—Tataki prefixed does not always denote distribution; e. g., Ka tataki-hia nga whakato o ta koutou mara? How many baskets (are these) that have been sown in your cultivation?

In measuring length, a fraction is denoted by huka; e. g.,

• E ono whatianga, huka to te whitu, It is six whatiangas[10] long, not quite seven.
• E waru maro[10], huka to te iwa, It is eight maro, not quite nine.

Ordinals.—The ordinal numbers are formed:

1. By tua prefixed to the cardinal; e. g., tua toru, third, tua iwa, ninth.

2. By whaka prefixed; e. g., whakatekau, tenth.

3. By the simple cardinal with the definite article, ko te wha tenei o aku haerenga mai, this is the fourth of my comings here; i. e., this is the fourth time I have come here.

{27}

CHAPTER VI.
OF THE PRONOUNS.

The personal pronouns of Maori are as follows:

The first person dual and plural has, as may be seen in the above table, two forms, taua and tatou, maua and matou; the former class may be denominated inclusive, the latter exclusive. For example:

The speaker of a company, who is addressing a person just come in, uses matou; e tatari ana matou ki a koe, we are, or have been waiting for you. If he means that only himself and another have been waiting, he uses maua, e tatari ana maua kia a koe: but when he addresses the whole company he uses tatou; Tatou ki te kai, let us go to dinner. If however he is addressing only{28} another beside himself, he uses taua; Taua ki te kai, let us (two) go to dinner. Again, if he says, No matou tenei kainga, he tells you, the hearer, that he and others possess this farm. If he says, No maua tenei kainga, he tells you that he and some other person already mentioned possess it. If however he use tatou, No tatou tenei kainga, he means that all that he is addressing have a share in it. If he says, No taua tenei kainga, he tells you, the hearer, that it belongs to you and himself.

The Personal Pronouns admit, in the singular, of declension; e. g.,

Pronouns, in common with nouns, have no gender. There is no word in Maori to denote the pronoun it with its dual and plural. Their place is generally supplied by some artifice of the construction, as will be shewn in the Syntax.

OF THE POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS.

As the possessive pronouns are closely connected with the personal, they may be mentioned next.

They are as follows:

The other possessive pronouns are formed from the dual and plural of their respective pronouns by prefixing o; e. g.,

Such words as himself, his own, my own, &c., are expressed in Maori by some adverb added in the sentence; e. g., Nona ake ano tona aroha ki a tatou, his love to us was his own; i. e., was self-derived.

The adverbs most usually employed for this purpose are ake, ano, noa, iho, tonu.

RELATIVE PRONOUNS.

The next in order are the relative pronouns. For these there is no distinct form in Maori. Sometimes they are wholly omitted in the sentence; e. g.

• Ko te tangata tenei i patua e Hone, this is the man that was beaten by John.

{30}At other times their place is supplied by some artifice of the construction. Vid. S.

DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS.

The demonstrative pronouns are as follows: Taua, tenei, tena, tera, and their respective plurals, aua, enei, ena, era.

Tenei and aua are used for that and those. Tenei is applied to the object nearest at hand, or to the point of discourse to which the speaker had last alluded; tena to an object near to, or connected with, you the person spoken to; tera to an object farther remote; e. g.,

• No Hone tenei ware, this is John's house.
• No Penehamine tena, that one near you.
• No Kukutai tera, that one farther off is Kukutai's.

The same distinction is to be observed in the plural number.

Sometimes we meet with ia used as a demonstrative, e. g.,

• Tona wenua kai ha ia, that is the very land of food.

{31}Note—Anei, and ara are often used by Ngapuhi for enei and era.

THE INTERROGATIVE PRONOUNS.

The interrogative pronouns are wai, aha, tehea, and its plural ehea, kohea, and sometimes, (particularly in Waikato,) pehea.

Wai is applied (1) to persons, and (2) to animals or things, as canoes, ships, &c., to which the name of a man has been given, and is always the pronoun used in asking the question, What is his name? It is sometimes applied to countries, &c.; but, in such cases kohea is the pronoun most frequently used.

The following are examples of the uses of wai and kohea:

• Ko wai tena? Who is that?
• Na wai tenei? Whose is this?
• Ko wai tena kuri? Who is that dog? i. e., what is his name?
• Ko wai tena poti? ko Wikitoria, what boat is that? ans. Victoria.
• Ko wai tona ingoa? What is his name?
• Ko wai tena whenua? What country is that?
• Kohea tenei? What place is this?

Note.—Wai will sometimes take the plural form by having ma postfixed; e. g., Ko wai ma ena? Who are they?

Aha is applied to everything in which kind is denoted; so also is pehea sometimes:

EXAMPLES.

• He aha tena mea? what (insect, animal, or thing) is that?
• Ko Hone aha? which John was it?—(was it John the Baptist, or John the Apostle?)
• He aha a Erihapeti ki a Hone? what (relation) is Elizabeth to John?
• Na te aha? from what cause? (why?)
• Pehea ana to whakaaro? what is your thought? i. e., what do you think?
• {32}E taea te pehea? what can be done? how can it be helped?
• He kai pehea tena kai? what kind of food is that?

Note.—The above sentence decides the right of pehea to be considered a pronoun. Most of the compounds however of hea; such as, kohea, pehea, nohea, ihea, mohea, &c., ought most probably to be considered as belonging to the class of adverbs.

The student will find, as we proceed, that the lines of distinction between the various classes of pronoun, adverb, preposition, noun, verb and adjective, are frequently but faintly marked, and that the same word may be often noticed as standing in four or five different ranks.

Tehea, and its plural ehea, is applied to which of a number, and is used to denote persons, or things; e. g.,

• Ko tehea tau e pai ai? which do you choose?
• Ko ehea tangata au e ki nei, which men do you speak of?

Note.—Pronouns are sometimes employed to denote the time of the sentence, as will be seen hereafter. (vid. verbs.)

THE DISTRIBUTIVE PRONOUNS.

Each and every one, are expressed by the demonstrative or possessive pronoun, and the noun twice or thrice repeated; e. g.,

• Haria mai e tera tangata, e tera tangata, tana kono riwai, bring each man his basket of potatoes.
• Ia tangata ia tangata, each man.
• I tenei ra i tenei ra, each day.
• E warea ana ki tana mahi ki tana mahi, each is engaged with his own particular business.

THE INDEFINITE PRONOUNS.

Some other and any, are most frequently denoted by te tahi, and its plural e tahi; sometimes also by the preposition i; (vid. prepositions.)

• Kua kite ahau i e tahi, I saw some (of them).
• Ko e tahi kihai i kitea e ahau, some I did not see.
• Kahore kau ahau i kite i te tahi, I did not see any at all.

{33}Whatever, whatsoever, &c., are expressed in various ways; as may be seen in the following examples:

• Ko ta koutou e inoi ai i toku ingoa, whatever ye ask in my name.
• Kia ho atu ki a ia tana mea e inoi ai ia, to give her whatsoever she would ask, Mat. 14, 7.
• Ka kai koutou, ka inu, ka aha ranei, whether ye eat or drink or whatever ye do. 1 Cor. 10, 31.

{34}

CHAPTER VII.
OF THE VERBS.[11]

§ 1. Classification.—They may be distributed in

(a) Primitive, i. e., underived from other words; e. g.,

• Noho, to sit.
• Hopu, to catch.

(b) Derivative, i. e. such as are derived from words of some other root; e. g.,

• E kakahu ana i tona, is putting on his garment.
• I ahatia koe? what was done to you?
• Penatia, do it in that manner.
• E hau, if it blow.
• Narungatia mai, push it in from above.
• E pai ana, it is good.

{35}This class is by far the most numerous. Under it also may be comprised

(1) Verbs formed by reduplication; e. g.

• Korerorero, to hold conversation with, &c.

(2) Compound verbs, i. e. verbs formed from two or more words joined together; e. g.

• Ma-te-matapihitia mai, give it me by the window.
• Whaka-ngoi-koretia, made weak.

Note.—As the same word is very frequently used in Maori as verb, substantive, adjective, and adverb, it is often impossible to determine under which of the above classes it should be ranked; neither, indeed, will it be necessary; as the origin of the verb in no way affects its grammatical relations.

§. 2. Number, Person, and Gender.—Maori verbs are not declined by inflection; i. e. by variation of the ground form; and therefore know nothing of number, person, and gender.

§. 3. Mood and Tense.—As neither the ground form, nor the auxiliary particles experience any variation from change of mood, we cannot recognize any grammatical form for denoting moods in Maori, and shall not therefore enter any farther into the subject at present.

§. 4. Tense.—Maori abounds in a variety of forms for denoting modifications of time. They are designated by verbal particles, (vid. Note,) adverbs, prepositions, pronouns, and the articles he and te placed in connexion with the verb. The force of these, again, is, in a large majority of cases, determined by the context, and we believe ourselves to be correct in saying that there are, in this language, but few absolute forms for determining tense; for example:

• E moe ana, he is sleeping.
• I reira e moe ana, there was he sleeping, or there he slept.
• I riri au, I was angry.
• Mo te aha koe i riri mai ai ki a au? why are you angry with me?
• Ka haere ahau, I will go.
• Na ka whakatika a Hone, then John rose. (See also preposition mo:)

Note.—The verbal particles are words which have no meaning in themselves, but which prefixed to a word, endue it with the qualities of a verb. They correspond to the auxiliary verbs of English, but do not admit of the same varieties of applications: neither can they lay claim to the rank of verb substantive. Thus in Maori we have no direct form for such phrases as the following, I am, you will, &c.

§. 5. They are as follows: e, ana, ha, kua, i, kia, hei, me, kaua, aua, and kei.

Their uses will be best ascertained by examining the paradigm at the end of this section. A more full consideration of them and of the other modes of construction, which are therein contained, will be deferred to the Syntax.

{37}As the voice of the verb but little affects its conjugation, we have not thought it necessary to make any separate head for the different voices; but have represented all in the one table.

The student, however, is recommended to read our remarks on the passive voice before he proceeds to examine into the tenses.

§. 6. It may be naturally expected that, in an unpolished language like Maori, there should not be much that is artificial, or complicated, in the arrangement of tenses. Such we believe to be the case. It is true that some would contend for as many tenses as may be found in English; but, independently of the improbability of such a thing, we believe that a careful investigation will lead the inquirer to the arrangement which we have adopted; viz. the present, the past, and the future.

It is true that other tenses may sometimes be met with which are accurately defined; but we cannot admit them a distinct place in the modifications of the simple verb; because such forms are always compound, or depend, at least, for their meaning upon the construction, and belong more properly to the syntax than to this part of the grammar.

§ 7. In examining into the time of a verb, it will often be very necessary for the student to notice whether the sentence, in which it is contained, is simple, or compound; a simple sentence[12] is that which consists of only one time; e. g.

• {38}E pai ana, it is good.
• Kahore ahau i kite, I did not see (it).
• Ko tatou katoa, ano he hipi, kua marara ke, we all as sheep have gone astray.
• Kua mate to tatou Kai whakaora i runga i te te ripeka, our Saviour died upon the cross.

A compound sentence is that in which two times are introduced; e. g.

• Me i reira ahau e pai ana, if I had been there it would have been well.
• Akuanei, tae rawa atu, kua mate, it will come to pass, that, when I have got there, he will be dead.
• Kua mate ahau, e ora ana nga rakau nei, I shall die before these sticks decay.
• Me i whakararatatia i mua, kua rarata, tenei, if it had been tamed before, it would have been tame now.

Of this, however, more hereafter.

We may here also mention that it will often be very necessary to notice the circumstances connected with the uttering of a sentence, i. e. whether it be emphatic; whether it be the answer to a question; whether a large measure of certainty is designed to be implied, &c., &c. On these particulars we shall remark in the Syntax.

.As it is quite immaterial with which part of the verb we commence, we begin with the imperative; simply because our remarks on it will be rather extended, and 2ndly, because we wish that our illustrations of that mood should appear in an unbroken line with our examples of the other parts of the Maori verbs.

{39}§. 8. The imperative mood of Maori abounds in more minute distinctions than any other part of the verb. We present them all here; chiefly because the sentences in which they occur are, for the most part, simple.

1. The most common form for expressing the imperative of an active verb is by its passive; e. g.,

For the passive voice, see table under that head.

2. (a) If the verb be neuter, and in the second person, the simple ground form is used; e. g.,

• Haere, go.
• Hororo, make haste.
• Tena, be prompt, be quick.
• Kati, be quiet.
• Whetero, put out your tongue.[13]

(b) Occasionally, however, we find the passive form used, when the meaning of the verb is neuter; e. g.

• Hapainga, let us start.
• Takiritia, idem.
• Kokiritia, dash forward (in pursuit, &c.)
• Hoea tatou, let us paddle.

Sometimes both active and neuter verbs will take the verbal prefixes e, kia, hei, me, kaua, aua, kei, before them to denote the imperative.

{40}(c) E is used sometimes to denote the imperative of active and neuter verbs. It is chiefly used with the second person singular, dual, and plural.

It is never found in the first person singular; but is occasionally used in the first person dual and plural. We know of no instance in which it is employed in the third person, and we believe the following sentence to be incorrect: E aroha mai te Atua ki a tatou, may God love us.

N.B.—Illustrations of these remarks will be given in the table.

(d) Kia is capable of being used in all the persons of the imperative. It is the particle most frequently used with the first person. In the second, it is chiefly used with verbalized adjectives; though occasionally it is prefixed to the verb. In the third, it is used before either adjective or verb, and by its help we may, perhaps, make the best approximation to a form of the imperative in which Maori has been heretofore deficient; viz.—the benedictory; as in such sentences as the following: God be merciful to you.

N.B.—Another way for rendering the above sentence (and one equally deserving of attention) is by the preposition ma; as in the following; ma te atua koe e atawhai.

We ourselves much incline to a form which, at first sight, may not appear very appropriate; viz., kei te atua te atawhai, or tera kei te atua, &c. Though these forms are apparently indicative, yet they are frequently used in the imperative sense; Kei a koe te whakaaro mo tena the consideration for that is with you, i. e., you are to attend to that; kei a koe te tahi kupu ki a tatou, a word to us is with you, i. e., give us a word. Tena ano tetahi taro i a koe ma taku tamaiti, give me some bread for my child. E kite koe i a Hone tena te tahi paraikete, if you see John, give me a blanket, i. e., tell John to &c.

The dehortative and cautionary particles kaua, aua, kei, belong strictly to the imperative.

(e) Under this head we should perhaps also mention the particle me. As it is occasionally heard instead of the real imperative, we shall give it a place here. {41}It will be observed that it does not take the passive after it; e. g.,

• Me patu te te poaka,
• Me hanga te taiepa.

(f) The only particles the imperative of passive verbs will admit before it are, kia, kaua, aua, and kei. Following is a table of sentences illustrative of the above remarks. We have preferred placing them all in one list that the student may more easily catch the various distinctions. Other forms are given by which the imperative is sometimes denoted.

The attention of the reader is also requested to the following paradigm of the tenses as classified according to our arrangement.

He will observe that, as number and person make no difference in the form, one example of a kind will be sufficient.

Most of the sentences here inserted are simple. We shall reserve the consideration of the compound sentences for the Syntax.

PRESENT SINGULAR.

1. E patu ana ahau, I am striking or strike.
2. E patu ana koe, you are striking, &c.
3. E patu ana koe, you are striking, &c.

DUAL AND PLURAL.

1. E patu ana maua, or matou.
2. E patu ana korua, or koutou.
3. E patu ana raua, or ratou.

OTHER FORMS FOR THE PRESENT.

1. E kore ahau e pai, I am not willing.
2. Ko au tenei, here I am, (lit. this is I).
3. He tangata kino koe, you (are) a bad man.
4. Ko toku matua ko Kukutai, Kukutai (is) my father.
5. {43}Ka pai, it is good.
6. E haere mai, she is coming.
7. E pai ranei koe? are you willing?
8. E ki nei (or na) koe, you affirm.
9. Kei te patu, he is killing (it), (lit. at the killing).
10. Noku tenei wahi, this place is mine (lit. mine this place.)

PAST TENSE.

1. reira ahau i te ata nei, I (have been) there this morning.
2. Ko Rawiri te matua a Horomona, David (was) the father of Solomon.
3. He tangata mohio a Horomona, Solomon (was) a wise man.
4. I haere ano ahau, I went.
5. Nau i wakaatu, you disclosed.
6. Ka haere a Ihu, Jesus went.
7. E ngari a Hone ka kite, John rather saw it (not I.)
8. Haere ana a Ihu, Jesus went.
9. He ua tena, that was rain, it rained (used chiefly in animated description.)
10. He tini aku korerotanga ki a ia, many (have been) my conversations with him.
11. Ko te tangata kua tukua mai, the messenger had been sent (before the other thing was done.)
12. Kihai i pai mai, he was not pleased.
13. Ka te tuku tena wahi, (Ngapuhi) that place has been given to, &c.
14. Kua patua te poaka? has the pig been killed?
15. Kua oti noa ake taku mahi, my work has been finished this some time.
16. He mea hanga naku te purutangi, the handle was made by myself; [lit. the handle (was) a thing made of mine, (actively).]

FUTURE.

1. Ka haere ahau, I will go.
2. {44}E riri mai koe? will you be angry?
3. Maku e patu, I will kill (it) [lit. the killing (it is to be) for me.]
4. Ko koe te haere? are you (the person) that is to go?
5. Tera e mate, he will die (perhaps), (lit. that will die.)
6. E kore e tukua, it will not be let go.
7. E tae koe ki Waitemata, When you go to Waitemata.
8. Akuanei ko ia kua tae, the chances are that he will get there first; (lit. presently it is he that has arrived.)
9. Kowai hei tiki? who is to fetch it?

INFINITIVE MOOD.

1. Haere ki te whiu, go to drive (it), (lit. go to the driving.)
2. Pai kia haere, willing to go.
3. E kore e ahei te tohe, I cannot press you; (lit. the pressing cannot be effected.)

§. 6. Voice.—Maori verbs, in respect of voice, may be considered under the three well known heads of active, passive and neuter.

§. 7. The active is the simple root modified by one or more of the words already mentioned, e. g. e patu ana ahau, I am striking.

§. 8. The passive is the root varied in its termination; e. g. e patua ana ahau, I am struck.

Note.—The student will find, as we proceed, that the Maori passive differs in some respects from that of the English, Latin and Greek.

§. 9. The neuter expresses being, or a state or condition of being; when the agent and the object acted upon coincide, and the event is properly neither {45}action nor passion, but rather something between both: as I am, I sleep, I walk."[14]

In the passive we meet with variation in the termination of the ground-form.

(a) It will be seen that the above arrangement is made according to the final letter of the ground form, and that each division contains some examples of reduplicated words, and of words ending in diphthongs.

(b) That, in words ending in a, the passive is mostly made by adding to the last syllable ia, ngia, kia, hia, ina, atia, kina.

{48}(c) That some verbs receive no additions to the last syllable; as maka, and that the active and passive are, in those cases, alike. On the Eastern coast ia takes the place of simple a in the passive; e. g. maka, makaia.

The speaker should be always careful, in pronouncing passive a to throw the emphasis strongly on the last syllable. The following words are of this description: panga, to throw away; pana, to shove away, &c.; kanga, to curse; wakamana, to ratify, &c.; taunaha, to bespeak; taka, to fall from a height; unga, to send; waha, to carry on the back.

(d) That some verbs have sometimes two or more terminations for the passive; as arohatia, arohaina, arohangia. We may here remark that some words have different passives in different districts; e. g.

• Whangainga (Ngapuhi), Whangaia (Waikato.)

(e) That in words, one or more of the syllables of which are repeated, the reduplication will very frequently be dropped in the passive; e. g.

• Kikini, kinitia; tapatapahi tapahia, &c.

(f) In a few instances we meet with a passive formed by a change of the first syllable; e. g.

• Rongo, to hear; rangona (passive); wakarongo, wakarangona (passive).

Examples of this rule are very few.

(g) Of the passives of compound verbs, two examples are given at the end of the table. The rule for their formation is the same as that for the passives of simple verbs: the final letters, in both cases, being the {49}only thing on which they depend. Occasionally, however, we meet with a word resolved into two parts, and each part put into the passive voice; e. g.,

• Kaihau, (v. act.) to sell the property of an individual without giving him any part of the payment, Kainga-hautia, (passive).

There is another form similar to the preceding, which requires to be mentioned here; viz., when two verbs follow each other in immediate succession, one of which acts as a kind of adverb, or qualifying word, to the other, they will both sympathize with each other in voice; will either be both active or both passive; e. g.,

• Toia haeretia, dragged along; lit. dragged gone.
• Tukua whakareretia, let down with a dash.
• Kai moe, eat sleeping, i. e., while he is eating he is sleeping.

In such phrases the latter of the two verbs will generally take tia for its passive form.

(h) Occasionally a passive word may be met with which has no active; as parangia e te moe, oppressed by sleep; rokohina and rokohanga, waiho, homai and hoatu.

(i) Passive verbs are used in a more extended sense in Maori, than what is commonly met with in other languages, not excepting, perhaps, even the three passives of Hebrew.

The following are a few illustrations of the various uses:—

• Haere, to go, v.n., te huarahi i haerea e ia, the road by which he travelled.
• Neke, move away (yourself) v.n., nekehia atu, imp. move (the thing) away, kua nekehia, was moved away.
• Titore, diffissus, part. adj., Titorehia, imp., Diffinde, adj.
• {50}Oioi, contremo, or nuto, v.n. oioia, imp., agita, v.a.
• Riri, angry, riria, angered; (e. g., ka riria ahau e ia.)
• Pai, good, kia pai, let it (the thing) be good.
• Wakapaia, imp., put it (the place &c.) to rights.
• Wakapaingia, to be accepted or approved of.
• Korero, to speak, korerotia, made the subject of conversation.
• Whakaaro, v.n., to think; whakaarohia, imp., think (of the thing); whakaarohia iho, think (of yourself, &c.)
• Kau, swim, v.n., ka kauria (te awa,) is swum over (the stream); ka wakakauria (te hoiho), (the horse) is made to swim over.
• Kakahu, a garment, kakahuria (tou,) put on your (garment,) wakakahuria, (te tamaiti) put on the child's clothes.
• Whangai, to feed, whangaia ma te ngohi, given as food for the fishes.
• Tae, to arrive at (a place), ka taea Waitoke, Waitoke has been arrived at.
• Taea noatia tenei ra, until it is arrived (at i. e. up to) this day.
• Huri, to turn a (grindstone &c.), kia hurihia taku toki, that my axe may be turned, i. e. ground.
• Whawhao, to stow or put into a basket &c.
• Kua whaowhina te kete ki te tupeka, the basket was stowed (with) tobacco, i. e. had tobacco put into it.
• Manene, to beg, kei manenetia koe ki te tupeka, lest you should be begged for tobacco, i. e. lest tobacco should be begged from you.
• Horihori, to tell falsehoods; ko te mea i horihoria e koe he tangata, the thing you erroneously said was a man, ko te mea i whakahorihoria e koe, the thing you denounced as false.

{51}For further remarks on this part of the Maori verb, vid. S.

§. 12. The verbal nouns also (for which vid. chap. 3 §. c.) experience considerable variations in meaning. They are in most cases formed from the passive voice of the root; and as the rules for their formation may be easily learned by comparing a few with their respective ground forms, it may perhaps be sufficient to give the nouns derived from the verbs of the last mentioned table:

§. 13. Neuter verbs.—On these but few remarks are required. For the distinction between the preposition i, by which they are followed, and the particle i, which follows active verbs, vid. i (prepositions, §. 10, note.)

That they sometimes take the passive form may be seen in the illustrations of the passive voice. In some cases also their passives change their nature, and become similar in meaning to the passives of active verbs; e. g.

• Nohoia tou kainga, dwell, or occupy, your farm.
• Ka hengia mai ahau e ia, I shall be (literally) ignored by him.

{53}§. 14. As the participial adjectives may be most conveniently classed under this head, we shall insert here a table of the principal of them:—

• Ea, paid for.
• He, unacquainted with.
• Hoha, wearied at.
• Horo, stormed (as a fort, &c.)
• Mahora, given (as a feast.)
• Makini, gapped.
• Mana, ratified, &c.
• Mao, ceased (as rain.)
• Maoa, cooked (as food.)
• Marere, fallen to the ground, &c.
• Maringi, spilt.
• Maru, bruised, beaten, &c.
• Matau, (sometimes with Ngapuhi;) e. g., Pakore e matau i a au, understood.
• Mate, dead.
• Mau, caught.
• Mawheto, loosed (as a knot.)
• Mimiti, dried up.
• Moti, destroyed, &c., (corresponding to the phrase clean sweep; Waikato.)
• Motu, cut.
• Mutu, ended.
• Oti, finished.
• Ongeonge, (same as Hoha.)
• Pahure, passed by.
• Pahemo, idem.
• Pakaru, broken. N.B..—Wākaru, is active.
• Pareho, consumed.
• Pau, idem.
• Riro, departed.
• Rite, completus, perfectus, (sometimes.)
• Riwha, gapped.
• Tahuri, overturned.
• Toremi, sunk into (as into a bog, &c.)
• {54}Tu, wounded, &c.
• Whanau, used sometimes as v.n., bring forth;
• sometimes as part. adj., brought forth or born.
• Whara, hurt (by accident.)
• Wera, burnt.
• Ngaro, lost, destroyed, &c.
• Ngenge, tired.
• Ngonga, beaten (same as Maru.)

§. 15. That we are correct in denominating such words, as the above, "participial adjectives," will appear from the consideration that they will assume the form of an adjective, or participle, according to the nature of the word by which they may be translated: thus marie may be translated quiet, and be considered an adjective; or pacified, and be considered a participle. Neither indeed will it appear strange that an adjective should be found, in one language, exactly corresponding to a participle in another, if we only reflect on the origin of the following adjectives of the English; exact, competent, complete, perfect, correspondent, &c., &c.

Like adjectives, these words will assume the form of a verb, when in connexion with the verbal participles. Indeed, (as we have already observed,) our impression is, that, the more we examine, the more shall we be led to think that a genuine verb is by no means a common thing in Maori; and that substantives, adjectives, and other classes, are the fountains to which most of the verbs of the language may be traced.

{55}

CHAPTER VIII.
OF THE PREPOSITIONS.

Scarcely any part of Maori is more worthy of attention than the prepositions. In no language, that we are acquainted with, are their powers so extensive. While, in common with those of English and Hebrew, they serve to express those relations, which in some languages are chiefly marked by the different endings of the nouns, they extend their influence still farther, and are, in many instances, of material importance in determining the time of the sentence in which they are placed.

They are simple and compound. The simple are those which, in construction, take no other preposition into union with them. The principal prepositions of this class are as follows:

• E, by.
• I, by, with, from, to, through, in, at, than.
• Ki, with, to, for, at, according to, in.
• Kei, at.
• No, of, from.
• Na, of, by, through.
• Mo, for (or because of), for (possession), at &c., &c.
• Ma, for, by, concerning.
• Hei, at, for.
• O, of.
• A, at.
• {56}Ko, at.
• To, up to.

The compound prepositions are those which, like the composite of Hebrew, require one or more of the simple to set forth their meaning. They are as follows:

• Runga, upon or above.
• Raro, beneath.
• Mua, before.
• Muri, behind.
• Roto, or ro, inside.
• Waho, outside.
• Tua, other side.
• Pahaki, other side, or this side of, (used in describing the position of an object.)
• Tai, idem.
• Waenga, midst of.
• Tata, near.
• Tawhiti, far off.

The meaning and uses, however, of the above, both simple, and compound, are exceedingly various; and the attention of the student is therefore requested to the following notices respecting them.[16]

E, by (applied to the agent, not the instrument) is always prefixed to the agent when a passive verb precedes; e. g.,

• Kua kainga e te kuri, was devoured by the dog.
• Kua kitea e Hone, was seen by John.
• Kua patua te ngaru e te ua, the waves were beaten down by the rain.

When neuter[17] verbs assume the passive form the agent follows, as in regular transitive verbs, and is {57}preceded by e; e. g.

• Katahi ano a kona ka takotoria e te tupeka, now for the first time has that place been laid upon by tobacco—now for the first time has tobacco lain there.
• Kangia e te ahi, kindled upon by the fire, i. e. having a fire kindled (there).

Verbal nouns, and verbs preceded by such words as hohoro, oti, ahei, hei, pau, taea, taihoa, taria, &c., will take e after them; e. g.

• Ngaunga e te ra, a scorching by the sun.
• Kua oti te patu e au, the killing has been finished by me; i. e. I have killed (it).
• E kore e ahei te hapai e ahau, the lifting cannot be accomplished by me, i. e., I cannot lift (it).

The following, also, are instances in which e is found after the active verb—after a verb, at least, active in form.

• Me wero e koe, you must stab it.
• Me wewete e ia, he must let it go.
• He mea hanga e to ringaringa, a thing made by the hand.
• Ka te arai mai i taku ahi e koe, (a Waikatocism), (see!) you exclude the fire from me.

I, by, (follows a neuter verb, no matter whether the agent be animate or inanimate):

• Kua mate i a Hone, killed by John.
• Pakaru i te hau, broken by the wind.
• Ka mate ahau i te wai, I am dead by water, i. e., I am thirsty.

2. With.

• Kia haere atu ahau i a koe? Shall I go with you?
• Ka riro mai i a au, will depart with me, i. e., I shall take, or obtain it.

If the following passage were properly and correctly translated, how different would its meaning be from that intended by the speaker! kia riro atu ratou i te hunga nanakia, rescue them out from the cruel people. The true meaning of the passage, as it stands, is, Let them depart into the power of the cruel.

3. From,

• Ihea koe? From whence do you (come)?
• Ki tetahi rongoa i a Hone, for some medicine from John.
• Inoia he ngakau hou i a Ia, pray for a new heart from him.

4. To, (denoting possession, used somewhat similarly to the dative we find in Latin when sum is used for habeo;) e. g.,

• I a au tenei kainga, this is my farm (or possession).
• Kahore he maripi i a au, there is no knife to me; I have no knife.

Note.—Beginners are often misled by natives and each other in the use of this preposition. Such sentences as the following are incorrect, I a koe haere, go thou, I a koe korero, you said. It should be, Haere koe; and, nau i korero.

5. Through, (or in consequence of),

• E kore e tae mai nga raupo i te ua, the raupo cannot be brought here in consequence of the rain.

{59}6. In, or at.

• To tatou matua i te rangi, our Father in Heaven.
• I hea tenei e takoto ana? Where has this been lying? In the cupboard.
• E aha ana kae i kona? What are you doing there?

7. At, (past time),

• I te aonga ake o te ra ka haere mai matou, on the next day we came here.

8. At, (future),

• I te ra horoi whare ka haere ake koe ki a matou, on Saturday you will come to us.

9. Than, (used in comparison); (vid. S. adjectives),

• E rangi tenei i tena, this is better than that.

10. Under this head may be classed some instances that cannot well be reduced to any of the above rules:

• E hara koe i te rangatira noku, you are not my master. E hara i a koe, (a kind of jocose phrase corresponding, perhaps, to that of some in England, you are a pretty fellow.)

The following examples seem to be opposed to rule 1, and are therefore deserving of notice. They are perhaps confined to Waikato:

• Ka timu te tai i a tatou, the tide for us (to pull with) will ebb.
• Haere mai ki te wahi ruru i a koe, come to the spot sheltered for you.
• Kei to moe i ona karu, he is indulging his eyes with sleep.

In such instances as these, we should regard i as pleonastic, somewhat like, perhaps, the prepositions from and in of Hebrew and Arabic.

The student should ever be mindful of the distinction between the preposition i and the particle by which the accusative, (as it would be called in Latin,) {60}is denoted. This particle has, of itself, no specific meaning. In many instances its use is similar to that of êhth in Hebrew; e. g.,

• A ka kite te Atua i te maramatanga, and God saw the light, Gen. i. 4.
• Kua whakarere ratou i a Ihowa, they have forsaken Jehovah.

It follows an active verb, whereas the preposition follows the neuter, and signifies by. The uses of the two words are totally opposite, as may be seen in the following example. A young teacher wishing to say, sin produces pain, thus expressed his sentiment: Ko te kino ka whanau i te mamae. Now, whanau is not an active verb. It is a participial adjective. It is used correctly in John iii. 8, Whanau i te Wairua, born of the Spirit. The sentence therefore that we have adduced, if strictly translated, would run thus, sin is born of, or produced by pain.

KI, with, (denotes the instrument); e. g.,

• Patua ki te rakau, beaten with a stick.

2. To,

• Ho mai ki a au, give it to me.
• Haere ki Manukau, go to Manukau.
• Te rohe ki a koe, the boundary to you; i. e., for or of your side.

3. For,

• Tetahi ki a koe, (fetch) a (garment) for yourself.

4. At (past time),

• I tanumia ki reira, was buried there.
• I maku ki runga ki te poti, was wet on board the boat.

5. At (future time),

• Ki te mane ka hoe mai, on the Monday will pull, or paddle, here.
• Kei roa ki reira, be not long there.

6. According to,

• E ai ki tana, according to what he says; i. e., as he would have it, &c.
• Ki ta ratou, ki taua taro na, he kikokiko, according to them, as concerning that bread, it is flesh; i. e., they maintain that that bread is flesh.

{62}We would here suggest by way of corollary that in quoting the sentiments of any writer, the most appropriate form for the phrase "according to" would be ki ta, as in the above example. Thus the gospel according to St. Matthew might be well rendered by "ko te rongo pai ki ta Matiu;" the rule, according to my opinion, is, &c., "ko te tikanga, ki taku whakaaro, ko &c."

It is used also where if would be employed in English:

• Ki te haere ahau, If I go.

Sometimes (in Waikato) it is used pleonastically:

• Kahore ki te matara to haere mai, it was not such a distance but he might have come.

Frequently, in consequence of the elliptical character of the language, it is found in various other uses, which it is difficult to reduce to rule. The following are a few examples:

• E noho ana koe ki te kai mau? are you staying from food?
• Te tatau ki a au, the door to me; i. e., open the door for or to me.
• Ka riro te waka ki a koe, the canoe for you will be gone; i. e., the canoe that is to take you will, &c.
• Heoi ano ki a tame ko te whare, let the tent be the only thing for the bull (to carry).
• Taria e hoe ki a au, delay your pulling (or paddling) for me; i. e., wait for me.
• Tikina atu tetahi kete, ki te kete nui, ki te kete hou, fetch a basket, let it be a large basket, let it be a new basket.
• I riri ahau ki reira, thereupon, or at that thing, was I angry.
• I haere mai ahau ki a koe ki te waka ki a au, I have come to you for the canoe for me; i. e., to get a loan of your canoe.

From the above sentence the student will form an idea of how much the business of language is performed in Maori by prepositions.

{63}KEI, at.—It denotes chiefly present time; e. g.

• Keihea? Kei te kainga. Where is it? At the settlement.

2. At. (future time.) It is not unfrequently found in such constructions as the following:

• Kei te mane ka haere mai, on Monday he will come here.

3. Sometimes, in animated language, it is used instead of ko before the nominative case; e. g.,

• Kei te ringaringa o Ngakete, aroarohaki kau ana, the hand of Ngakete, it was all a quiver.

4. Occasionally, in Waikato, it is used in the following construction: kua riro kei te hoe mai, he is gone to fetch it (the canoe). We are aware that it has been said that there should be a stop at riro, and that properly the above may be said to consist of two sentences, as follows: he is gone, he is fetching it. We are, however, certain that many sentences will be heard, in which no stop can be detected in the native pronunciation.

5. Sometimes it is used in the sense of like:

• Kei te ahi e toro, like fire that burns.
• Koia ano kei te kowhatu, exactly as if it were a stone.

NO, of, (the sign of the possessive case.) In this signification he is the only article that it will admit before it; e. g.,

• He wanaunga no Hone, a relation of John's.

The following construction, however, is an exception:

• Katahi ano te potae pai no Hone, for the first time the good hat of John's, i. e., what an excellent hat is that of John's!

2. From, (that time),

• No te mane i haere mai ai, he came here (last) Monday.

3. From, (that cause),

• No reira i kino ai, from that cause was he displeased.

Note.—In all examples of this, and the preceding head, no will take a past tense after it.

4. From, (that place),

• No Matamata tenei tangata, this man belongs to Matamata.

There is a distinction between this meaning of no, and that of i, (vid. i. 3.) which is very useful and important. No signifies the place to which you belong, whether it be England, Rotorua, &c. I signifies the place you have been visiting as a mere sojourner.

Thus if we were to ask a person, "No hea koe?" he would most probably reply, "No Hauraki, no Waikato," or some place of which he was a denizen; but if we were to ask "I hea koe?" he would then mention some place he had been just visiting. This distinction does not seem to be so clearly recognized at the northward as it is in all the central parts of the island.

NA, of, the active form of no, (vid. Syntax for the distinction between o and a).

• Na wai tena kuri? whose is that dog?

2. By,

• Na Hone i patu, was beaten by John.

Note.—Na does not in this sense take a passive after it. It is not quite certain that na does, in such sentences as the above, signify by. The subject will be more fully considered in the Syntax. (vid. verbs).

Na, in this sense, always takes i after it. The following sentence is incorrect: Nana hoki kua tohutohu enei mea, he also has appointed these things. (For na followed by ka vid. Ma. 5.)

3. Through or BY (what cause, instrumentality, &c.)

• Na te aha i mate ai, from what did he die?

{65}Sometimes, in this use of it, it is followed by a passive voice, with ai.

• Na te aha i pahuatia ai? for what cause was he plundered?
• Na te aha i meinga ai? why was it done?

Sometimes (but rarely) it is followed by an active verb:

• Na te mea i tuhituhi atu ai au, the reason of my writing (is because) &c.

4. By (place, conveyance. &c).

• Na uta, by land.
• Na te kaipuke, by ship.
• Na Hauraki, (went) by Hauraki.

MO.—N.B. Mo and ma seem to be future forms of no and na in many particulars.

1. For or BECAUSE OF, (followed most frequently by a past tense, even though the meaning be present); e. g.,

• Mo te aha koe i aroha ai ki a te Karaiti? why do you love Christ?
• Mo te aha koe i mauahara tonu ai ki a au? why do you bear a continual grudge to me?
• Mo te tutu ki te kura i whakatikia ai, for disobedience in School were (they) deprived (of them.)

Sometimes, however, it is followed by other particles:

• Mo te aha kia riri kau? why should he be angry?
• Mo te aha koe ka tutu nei kia au? why are you thus disobedient to me?

2. For, (denoting appropriation, use, or some action passing on to the noun or pronoun to which it is prefixed):

• Ho mai moku, give to me (for my use).
• Hei kainga mou, as a farm for you (or land to reside upon).
• He patu moku, a beating for me, i. e., to beat me.
• He raka mo taku pouaka, a lock for my box.
• {66}Murua mai moku, take it (from them) for me, i. e., as a thing for me, for my benefit, use, &c.

3. For (in exchange), he utu mo taku mahi.

Sometimes but rarely it is found in the following construction:

• Me aha te utu mou? what is the payment for you to be?

4. For.

• Whakawateatia he huarahi mo mea ma, clear a road for our friends.

5. At, (future time),

• Mo amua haere ai, go at a future period.

6. Concerning.

• Nga kupu i korerotia ki a koe mo Tipene, the report that was related to you concerning Stephen.

We have observed mo used by foreigners in sentences in which for would appear to be pleonastic, as open the door for me; dress this wound for me, &c. We have no hesitation however in affirming that mo is never used in such a construction.

7. Used with a verbal noun to denote a preparedness, &c., for some future act; e. g.

• Mo nga haererenga ki reira ko era kai, that when I go there, there may be food (ready for me); i. e. I cultivate at that place that I may have food when I visit it. Vid. S.

MA. The active form of mo. (Vid. S.) It implies always future time.

1. For.

• Ma wai tena kuri? for whom is that dog?

2. By or more strictly, for,

• Ma Hone e patu, let it be killed by John; lit. let the killing be for John.

3. By, (what means, &c.)

• Ma te whakapono ka ora ai, by faith shall (we) be saved.

{67}4. Sometimes it is used to denote a simple future:

• Maku e korero, I will speak (to him.)

5. It is very frequently employed in hypothetic and contingent propositions; e. g.

• Ma nga Pakeha e tohe, kaua e noho, If the Europeans press (to stop with them) do not remain.
• Mau e pai ka haere au, If you please I will go.
• Haria atu: mana e whakapai, mana e whakakino, take it (to him): (it will be) for him to be pleased with it, (it will be) for him to be displeased (with it).

A very common way of denoting contingency is to associate ma or na with a personal pronoun, even though the latter have no direct meaning in the sentence. We give the following sentence in full, that the reader may better understand our meaning.

• He tangata Atua, ka puta mai ki a ia te kai, ka whiua te tahi ki tahaki, hei whakahere i tona Atua, mana ka pau i te kuri ranei, mana ka pau i te poaka ranei. A man who has a God, if food is brought to him (to the man), part (of it) is thrown to one side as an offering to his God, (as chance may have it) it may be eaten by the dog, or it may be eaten by the pig.
• Nana ka nui te hau, nana ka iti, even though the wind be strong, even though it be light, (still does he carry on.)

To this interesting point of Maori criticism we shall return when we treat on the tenses; vid. S.

6. By, (with reference to place or conveyance) in the same sense as na; vid. Na. 4.

RA, by, same as Ma 6; vid.

HEI, at,—always future, applied to place, intention &c.

• Hei kona tatari, at that place stop.
• Hei reira korero ai, there upon speak.
• {68}Hei konei, be (you) here;—a farewell.

2. It is often used to denote purpose, object, use, &c., where in English we should use as, to, for, instead, &c., e. g.

• Haria etahi kanga hei o mou, take some corn as viaticum for you. Hei aha tena? hei rewa mo te poti; what is that for? as a mast for the boat. Kowai hei tiki? who is to fetch (it)?

3. Occasionally, but rarely, it is used to denote frequent action; e. g.

• Ko wai hei ruke tonu i nga riwai nei, who is this that is continually throwing about the potatoes?

O, of; e. g.

• Te whare o Hone, the house of John.

A, of; the active form of o; vid. S.

• Te mahi a Hone, John's work.

A. (This seems to be different from the article a, as also from the foregoing.)

• At.—A te mane, on, or at, the Monday (we will go,) &c.

KO. (This seems to be different from the verbal particle ko;—vid. verbal particles Syntax.)

• At.—Ko reira noho ai, at that place stop.
        Ko reira korero ai, then speak.

{69}TO, up to. The following is the only construction in which we have heard this preposition.

• To nga hope te wai, the water is up to the loins.
• Ka to nga uma te wai nei, the water is up to the breast.

N.B.—To almost always takes a plural number after it.

Compound Prepositions.—One or two examples will be a sufficient illustration of all.

Runga is capable of the following combinations: I runga i, ki runga ki, ki runga i, ki runga o, no runga no, no runga i, o runga o, kei runga kei, kei runga i, hei runga i, hei runga hei, mo runga mo, &c., &c. The first preposition in the combination and the meaning of the sentence will always determine the last.

Sometimes the adverbs ake and iho, (vid. adverbs,) as also the particles atu and mai, are postfixed to the prepositions to increase its force; e. g.

• E ngari tena i runga ake, that which is above (it) is better.
• A muri ake nei, hereafter.

A very common and elegant use of runga is, when it is employed in the sense of amongst, on, or with, to denote concomitancy, &c., &c.; as in the following examples:

• I hokona e koe i runga i te he, you purchased it on a bad title.
• Kei runga tenei i to mahi, we are now on the work; i. e., are busily engaged at work.
• {70}E karakia ana i runga i te he, he worships on sin; i. e. while he worships God he practices sin.

The other compound prepositions may often be rendered very useful by giving them, as in the above, a figurative acceptation according with the nature of the subject. One or two examples will suffice.

Tua is thus employed:

• He tau ki tua, a year is on the other side; this day year, what a long time (you intend to be absent)!
• He mate kei tua, misfortune is on the other side, i. e. awaits you.
• Kei tua o te ra tapu nei, next week.

The student should carefully remember that muri and mua do not exactly correspond with behind and before in English, and that tua is very frequently employed to denote those words.

We have heard the following very erroneous expressions from some old settlers:

• Tutakina to tatau o te aroaro, shut the door of the front, i. e. the front door.
• Kei muri i te whare, behind the house.

Muri and mua (as well as the substantive aroaro) are chiefly employed in connexion with living objects. When allusion is made to the date of events, the student will remember that the prepositions a, mo, mo, a, hei, kei, ko, hei a and ko a, denote future time, and that no, i, and o will always indicate past time.

{71}These prepositions will sometimes take verbal particles into connexion with them, and may be frequently found in other forms to occupy the place of verbs, substantives, and adverbs; vid. ch. 1, § 6. (c), ch. 7. § 1. (b), and ch. 9.

Sometimes we meet with other forms for denoting what would be represented by a preposition in English. Though their proper place belongs to the dictionary, we beg the reader's permission to insert a few here:

• A Mangapouri atu ana, even to Mangapouri.
• I te takiwa, (in the interval);—between.
• I te ritenga atu, (in the line or direction of);—ante and contra—over against.
• Ki tona aroaro, (to his front);—before.
• I tetahi taha ona i tetahi taha, (on one side, on one side);—round about him.
• Ki tera taha, (to the other side);—across (a stream).

The prefix whaka, when in union with a word, will impart the meaning of towards, and change it into an adverb; e. g.,

• Kumea whakarunga, pull upwards.
• Haere whaka tepa, go towards the pa.
• I hoatu ai e ahau i whakaaro ki tona matua, I gave it to him in consideration of his father; (propter.)
• Kihai ahau i whakaae, i whakaaro hoki ki a Hone; I did not assent on account of John; i. e. for John's sake.

{73}

CHAPTER IX.
OF THE ADVERBS.

The adverbs of Maori may be considered under two heads, primitive and derivative.

The primitive are but few in number.

The derivative are very numerous, and may be thus ranked:

1st. Those which require some preposition to exhibit their application; e. g.,

• Ki hea, no reira.

2ndly. Those which are derived from words of other parts of speech.

3rdly. Those phrases which supply the place of adverbs.

The last class is very large, Maori being deficient in the variety of adverbs; and though, strictly speaking, most of them cannot claim a place in this chapter, we shall mention them:

1stly. Because many foreigners are much perplexed from not being acquainted with them, and

2ndly. Because, being idiomatic phrases, a knowledge of them is of great importance to the composition of elegant Maori.

Note 1.—Some of the following adverbs might, it will be seen, have been easily classified under other heads. It was necessary, however, to have a classification, and it is not of much consequence under which head a phrase of equivocal character should be classed.

{74}Note 2.—Some of the adverbial particles are fully considered in the next chapter.

Adverbs may be reduced to the following classes:—to those of time, place, order, quantity, quality, manner, affirmation, negation, comparison, interrogation, and intensity.

ADVERBS OF TIME.[18]

• {75}Inaianei-nei-ano, at, or since this present moment.
• Nonai-akenei, a few minutes, days, &c., ago.

While he may be found, might also be rendered by i tona kiteatanga.

• Ahea? at what future time?
• Apopo, to-morrow.
• A tahi ra, the day after to-morrow.
• A mua, hereafter.

• Tenei ake, (this afterwards,) by and bye, hereafter.
• Kei taku kitenga i a ia, when I see him.

• Apopo ake nei, idem.
• A muri ake nei, henceforth.
• Mo a mua, at a future period.
• E takato ake nei, (it lies hereafter,) henceforward.
• A, ake, ake, ake, for ever.
• Kia mo—ata te maranga, rise early; (lit. let the rising be at dawn.)
• Ko reira, on that occasion, then (future.)
• {76}Meake, or perhaps more correctly mea ake, presently, or, was on the point of.
• Kia mea (ka hoki mai au?) (shall I return) after a little while.
• Ka mutu, when finished, by and bye.[19]
• Ka mea, after a little interval, idem; e. g., ka mea ka haere ake, by and bye you will follow us.
• Nonahea? since, or at what time (past)?
• Nonanahi, yesterday.
• Inanahi, yesterday.

• No-tua-iho, time out of mind.
• Inamata (Waikato) immediately, directly, &c.
• E haere ana tenei au, I will go immediately.
• Penei i nanahi ka tae mai a Hone ma, it was this time yesterday when, &c.
• {77}Kia penei apopo ka u, we shall land about this time to-morrow.

• Kahore i puta atu te kupu kua whakatika, I had not spoken, (i. e., immediately, as soon as I had spoken) he arose.
• Haere po, go by night.
• Haere awatea, go by day.

OF PLACE.

Note 2. Ki reira, no reira, hei reira, &c., correspond, in most cases, with ki kona, no kona, hei kona, with this difference, however, {78}that the na and ra follow the rule already noticed. Vide tena, Pronouns.

• Haere iho te tokitoki, haere iho te tahutahu, burn off the felled timber, and immediately as soon as it has been chopped up, (lit. go down the chopping, go down the burning).
• Ko te tahutahu ko te ko, ko te tahutahu ko te ko, immediately as soon as, &c.
• Tokitoki iho, ko atu, dig it immediately as soon as it is chopped up, (lit. chop downwards, dig forwards).

• He mea tatau a tau te utu, the payment is to be a thing counted per year; i. e. it is to be rented yearly.
• I tenei tau i tenei tau, yearly.
• He tau pea mahi atu, he tau pea mahi atu, this (manuring of the tree) is, perhaps, a work of every year, done yearly; kei te hauhake riwai, tuku iho kei te kumara, (we) are now (engaged) at digging up potatoes, afterwards (we shall be) at the kumara.
• Ka maha nga haerenga, many have been his goings, i. e., he has gone frequently.
• Hoki ake ko aua kupu, hoki ake ko aua kupu, he repeats the same words over and over again, (lit. return up, those very words, return up, those very words).
• Na wai-a, at length, so it was, it came to pass.
• Tatari noa, a, waited a long time.
• A oti noa, until finished.
• Kia tae mai ra ano, until he arrives.
• Ka tahi ano, now for the first time.
• {79}Ka tahi ano he mea pai, it is a good thing indeed.
• Ka tahi au ka mea atu, then I said.

OF ORDER.

• I noho ai, he hau tetahi, he kai kore ka rua, (we) remained away 1st, (because of) the wind; 2ndly, (we) had no food.
• Ka rua aku haerenga, I have gone twice, (lit. my goings have been two.)
• Whakatepea te ko, kaua e pokapokaia, dig in regular progression, not here and there, (lit. ordina fossionem.)
• Me haere wakatepe te korero, relate the matter in order, (lit. the speech must go in order.)
• Hurihia ko roto, turn (it) inside out.
• Hurihia kotuatia te papa, turn the board on the other side, upside down.
• Matua, (Ngapuhi) first; kia matua keria, let it be first dug.
• Mataati (Waikato) hopukia mataatitia, caught first.
• Kua huri koaro te tangata wero,[21] the tangata wero has turned adversely.
• Ho mai ki raro nei, give it down here.
• Kei haere ki tawhiti, do not go far.
• Whiua ki tua, throw it to the other side.
• Neke atu ki tahaki, move to one side.
• Kumea whakarunga, pull upwards.
• Whakawaho, outwards.
• Whakaroto, inwards.
• A, tae noa ki te Pukatea, even to the Pukatea.
• Haere iho, come down (to me).
• Piki ake, climb up (to me).
• Makā atu, thrown away.
• {80}Rukea ake e ahau, thrown away by me.
• Makā mai, throw it here.

• Pehea te mataratanga? how far?
• A, hea atu ra ano? How far will you go?
• A, hea noa atu, one knows not where.
• Tautauamoa rawa tana kai, tana kai, each man eats separately (i. e., by himself.)
• Riri tautauamoa, fighting, each by himself.
• Kaua e ururuatia te whangai, don't feed (the child) in rapid succession, without any stop (tout de suite.)
• Me whakahipahipa etahi rangi, (lit. let some days be made uneven,) i. e., do it every alternate day, or, at irregular periods.
• Haere tahi, go together.
• A, te tukunga iho, (well, the letting down, at last, finally,) i. e., the issue of such conduct, &c.
• E kore e roko kainga kua ruaki, he vomits immediately, as soon as he has eaten (it).
• I te orokohangaanga o te ao, when first the world was made.
• Kati inanahi ka haere mai koe, stop yesterday you came here; i. e., you started about this time yesterday.

OF QUANTITY.

• Ho mai kia maha, give abundantly.
• Ho mai katoa mai, give entirely, or wholly.
• Tena hoki te tahi taro, give me also, or besides, some bread.
• Ho mai kia iti, give me (let it be little), paululum.
• Kia penei, let it be so much.
• {81}Poto rawa, consumed totally.
• Koia ano te pai! how excellent!
• Ano! &c., idem.
• Roa poto nei ano, (long short,) i. e., moderately long.
• Kahore atu, no other besides.
• Tikina atu hoki, fetch another besides.
• I ki mai ano hoki ia, he said moreover.

OF QUALITY.

• Haere tupato, go cautiously.
• Kia uaua ki te mahi, be strong to work, i. e., work industriously.
• Kia kaha te hoe, pull (the oar) strong.
• Noho whakaaro kore, sit without thought, i. e., thoughtlessly.
• He aha i aweke ai to mahi? te tuku noa iho te tuku noa iho, why is the work done neatly and not (rather) heedlessly, (lit. and not rather let it down in any way, let it down in any way.)
• Haere wehi, go fearfully.
• Kai haere, go eating, i. e., eat as he walks.
• Tu tahanga,[22] stand nakedly, i. e., naked.
• — kau, idem.
• Haere noa atu, go without guide, fear, &c., &c.
• Tangohia huhua koretia iho, taken without cause, i. e. causelessly.
• Ohia noa iho au ki te patu, I struck (him) unintentionally.
• E hara i te mea totika, not intentionally.
• Patua maoritia, killed intentionally, in the common way, &c.
• — marietia, intentionally (sometimes).
• I tukua whakareretia, let down by a dash, not with care.
• {82}Te kaha te tuku, don't let it down violently, i. e. do it gently.
• Tukua marietia, let it down gently, peaceably.
• Kia ata tuku,  —— gently.
• Kahore ano kia ata maoa, not quite done, (i. e. in cooking).
• Te ata pai marie o te rangi i nanahi! what an exceedingly fine day was yesterday!
• He pupuhi noa, firing without an object.
• Tu kau ana, stand empty, idle, &c.
• Marie ano ahau i haere mai ai i ora ai koe, I have come fortunately, by which you were saved; i. e. I have come just in time to save you, or, it is well that I came to, &c.

OF AFFIRMATION.

Maori is very well supplied with affirmative and negative particles, all of which differ by very slight shades of meaning from each other, and the uses of which will be best learned by practice.

• Ae,[23] yes.
• Ina, idem.
• Aana, idem.
• Koia, idem.
• Ae ra, idem.
• Ae ra hoki, yes truly, &c.
• Ae ra pea, idem.
• Koia ha hoki, idem.
• Ae ko, yes (you are correct).
• {83}Koia pea, yes, perhaps; (sometimes used ironically for a negative) yes indeed!

OF NEGATION.

Negative adverbs partake of the nature of verbal particles. We have given some examples of them in chapter vii., (vid. paradigm of the tenses,) and we shall have occasion also to notice them in the Syntax.

• Kei, do not, and take care lest, or lest.
• Aua hoki, (used in some parts of Waikato for) no, no; not at all.
• E hara koe i te rangatira noku, you are not my master.
• Kiano, (Ngapuhi) not yet.

Haunga,[24] not, (denoting exclusion, or exception); e. g.,

• Haunga tena, not that, (but the other.)
• {84}Aratakina mai te poaka; haunga te mea purepure, lead the pig here; not the speckled, (but the other.)
• Kahore haunga, (Waikato) used sometimes instead of haunga.

OF COMPARISON.

• Penei, kua ora, thus, (in that case, if that had been done) he would have been saved.
• Koia ano tena, exactly so.
• Me mahi motuhake, work separately.
• Haere ana ia, ko tona kotahi, he went by himself, alone.
• Waihoki, likewise, also.
• Ano kua mate, as though he were dead.
• Me te mea, &c. (Waikato) idem.
• Koia ano kei te wai, exactly as if it were water.
• Haere a parera, walk like a duck.[25]
• Kia wakatangata nui, act manfully.
• Wakatupu tangata, idem.

OF INTERROGATION.

Maori has many particles which indicate interrogation, and which correspond, in some particulars, with {85}the enclitic particles ne and num of Latin; e. g.,

• E pai ana? ne? are you inclined? are you?
• Ine, (Waikato,) differs but little in its use from the above.

Ranei, ianei, iana, and iara, are always incorporated into the sentence, and generally denote a question, e. g.,

• E pai ana ranei koe?
• Koia?[26] Indeed? (when used by itself).
• Oti, else.
• Na-te-aha? why?
• Me pehea? How must it be done?

Ranei is very frequently used in the sense of whether.

Ianei, iana, and iara, are sometimes pleonastic in Waikato.

OF INTENSITY.

Pai rawa, tino tika, tino pai rawa, kino whakaharahara, tika pu, he noa iho, tini whakarere, tika tonu; all these adverbs stand for very or some modification of it; e. g.,

• I hoki rawa mai koe ihea? what is the exact, or last place from which you have returned?
• Pokuru iho, pokuru iho te namu, densely clustered the sandflies.
• Kahore kau, not at all.
• Haere ra pea, go now, I say, &c.
• Haere ra, idem.

{87}

CHAPTER X.
OF THE PARTICLES.

We have thought it better to devote a separate chapter to the consideration of the following particles of Maori; first, because those words, though they strongly partake of the nature of adverbs, are yet sometimes used as conjunctions; secondly, because we are of opinion that a distinct consideration of them will be the best way to impart clear and comprehensive views of their nature.

An accurate acquaintance with these epea pteroenta "winged words" of discourse, is in most languages of very difficult attainment: but in Maori, particularly, do they require our study; that language not conceding to the verb the same prominent place that it occupies in other languages, and rather, (as we have already observed,) transacting the business of predication by pronouns, particles, &c.

They are mainly used for embellishing, defining, and impressing a sentence, and may, with the prepositions, be justly denominated the hinges of Maori.

To enumerate them all would be an endless task, and perhaps a useless one: for, in no part of Maori is there so great a discrepancy in the various districts. The following, we think, are the most general in use, and most deserving of notice: atu, mai, ake, iho, ai, ano, ra, koa, u, hoki, kau.

Atu and mai are, in most respects, exactly opposite; atu indicates an emanation forth of action from—the latter an approach or direction towards—the speaker.

{88}

N.B.—Atu will sometimes lose its peculiar meaning after a verb, (vid. verbs, S.) It will also occasionally stand for other: Tera atu ano, that is another; i. e., there are other besides.

Ake and Iho. The general uses of ake and iho are, of the former up, and of the latter down, to the speaker:

• Haere ake, come up (to us).
• Heke iho, come down (to us).
• E tu iho, he stands up there, i. e., down towards (us).
• Te mea e ngangautia ake, the thing about which there is that contention below, (lit. is contended up towards (us)).

Sometimes they will stand, the one for up, the other for down, to the object of the action; e. g.,

• E kore ahau e roa ake, I am not tall enough to reach up (to it).
• Ho ake ki a ia, give it up to him.
• {89}Pataia iho te mate, ask down (to him) his sickness.

Ake and iho will sometimes denote propriety, peculiarity, self-existence, &c.; e. g.,

• Maku ake ano, for myself alone.
• Mona iho ano tena, that is for himself alone.
• E hara i te toka tu ake, not a rock that has stood of itself.

Ake will sometimes signify the other side of the speaker, whether it be before, behind, to one side of, above, below, &c.; e. g., haere ake to a hearer in front will mean come behind me: to a person behind, it will signify come to my front.

N.B.—Iho does not seem to have any corresponding opposite to this meaning of ake.

Sometimes, also, ake is employed to designate a motion by another towards some place with which the speaker is in connexion; e. g.,

• Ka mea, ka haere ake ki Waitemata, follow me by and bye to Waitemata.
• He aha te tikina ake ai he ti ma te turoro nei? why has not tea been fetched (from my residence) for this patient?
• E puta mai, ka karanga ake ki a au, when he comes you will call to me, (who am now going away).

Under these two last rules should, perhaps, be mentioned the following examples:

• Tangohia ake te ngarara i taku tuara, take the insect off my back.
• Ma koutou e urunga ake, do you of the bow of the canoe steer, i. e., so paddle that the stern, where I am, may be directed rightly.

Note 1.—There are other subordinate meanings of ake and iho, of which examples have been given under the adverbs, and which do not, we think, require any further notice.

{90}Note 2.—Ake and iho are often used after verbs, in a manner somewhat corresponding to that of the verbal particles. (vid. verbs. S.)

Ai is a particle of great use. It is chiefly employed as a substitute for the relatives who, which, what, and has reference to the time, place, manner, cause, means, intention, &c., of an action; as in the following examples:

• No te ra horoi whare i haere mai ai, started for here on Saturday.
• I tona kitenga ai, when it was seen.
• Te whare i moe ai ia, the house in which he slept.
• Te peheatanga i meatia ai, the way in which it was done.
• Te take i patua ai, the cause for which he was beaten.
• Ma te aha e ora ai? by what means be saved?
• I tuhituhi ai au nau hoki i utu i ena riwai, I have written to you because you paid for the other potatoes.

Occasionally, however, it is heard as a simple expletive; e. g.,

• I mua ai, formerly.

2ndly. It is employed with the verbs to denote a sequence and, occasionally, an opposition of action, and might be translated by "and then," "to," and sometimes "but."

• Haere, ka hoki mai ai, go, and then return.
• Haere ki reira noho ai, go there to stop.
• Kua hereherea, noho ai, kawea atu ana ki a te Paki, she was enslaved, and remained such for some time, then was carried to Paki.
• Ko te pa ano tera; noho ai ia ki Horotiu, that indeed is his village; but he dwells at Horotiu.

Ano. This is a particle much used in assertions and replies. Its meaning will vary with that of the word to which it is postfixed.

• Indeed; Tenei ano nga tangata o toku kainga te mahi nei i te kino, Here truly are the people, &c.
• Ko ia ano te tikanga o te aroha, id demum est firma amicitia.
• Naku ano taku, mine is my own.
• Kati ano, stop I say, (or beg of you).
• Also; No Waikato ahau, no Rotorua ano, I am from Waikato, from Rotorua also.
• Only; Kotahi ano taku, one only is mine. (Anake would not here be used.)
• Immediately, akuanei nei ano, now instantly.
• Same; Ko nga kau ano nga kau, they are the very same cows.
• Different; He tangata ano tena, that belongs to another person.
• Again or another; Tikina ano, fetch another.
• Same as; Ano e moe ana, as if he were sleeping.
• Self; Mana ano, for himself.
• I whakaae mai ranei? I whakaae ano. Was he willing? He was willing.

It is used in combination with other particles, as follows:

• Heoi ano, that is all.
• Ano hoki, also.
• {92}Ra ano, until.
• Nei ano, this is it, or here it is, &c.
• Koia ano! how (fine, &c.)!
• A, e noho nei ano? and is he still here?
• Ano ra, whakarongo mai, (yes, or no;) but listen to me; i. e., I do not deny what you say; only listen to me.
• Ko tena ano ra, that one I say, or that also.

Ano, in the beginning of sentences, seems with Ngapuhi to admit of a wider application than what is generally heard in Waikato; e. g., Ano ka tae ki te whare, and when he came to the house.

N.B.—No, also, with the same people, seems to admit of a somewhat similar application.

Ra is a particle corresponding in its use with nei and ra, and is frequently used to supply the place of the relative which; e. g.,

• I kite ra koe, which you saw.
• There; e takoto mai ra, it lies there.

It is sometimes used in commands and energetic sentences, for Then.

• Haere ra, go then.
• Heoi ano ra, that is all about it then.

Often in replies; E pai ana? Ae ra.

Koa is a particle used mostly in correcting, &c., another speaker or oneself:

• E pa, e he ana koa koe, O my friend you are wrong.
• Aana koa, yes (you are right).

It is difficult to define its meaning in the following phrases:

• E hara koa (iana or ianei or iara) ra? what else?
• E ngaro hoki koa iana, &c., that, I confess, is (right, wrong, &c.)
• {93}Ra koa ka kai iho ia i te ata o tana kai, (even though the offering be devoured,) still (does the God) eat the shadow of the food;—yet, nevertheless.

U is often used as a mere expletive. Sometimes it has force in exculpatory sentences; e. g.,

• E taea te aha u ana i te mamae? how could the poor fellow help it from the pain?

Note.—Though often used as an expletive, u will not, however, admit of being thrust into every sentence. Some foreigners seem peculiarly fond of using it. The following use of it is, at least in Waikato, erroneous: "A he tangata nui hoki a Hone, he rangatira hoki u a ratou." We are unable, we confess, to state the meaning of this last clause. The speaker, perhaps, intended the preposition no by u a, "a chief of their party."

Hoki; Some of the uses of hoki have been inserted under the adverbs. We shall give a brief view of the principal of them here. Its more general uses are, also, for, because:

• He mea hoki ka tae mai ahau, in consideration of my having come.
• Koia hoki, yes truly (he is right), &c.
• Ina hoki, (the same as mei of Waikato,) viz., as you may judge from.
• Kahore ano i tae mai, ina hoki te pu, te rangona, he has not arrived, as we may judge from the gun, its not being heard.
• Nei hoki, and na, or ra, hoki; Hopukia te poaka; Kua mau ra hoki, oh, it has been caught.
• Kati te tohe, kua riro atu nei hoki te utu, cease importuning; inasmuch as the payment has been given.

This form we approve much of for expressing the following: "for the death of the Lord Jesus Christ," kua mate nei hoki, &c., i. e., inasmuch as, &c.

• Ki te titaha hoki ra, well then, (if you won't give that,) give me an axe.
• Ho mai hoki, give it I say.

Kau; Riri kau, angry without cause.

• {94}E ngenge ana koe? Ngenge kau! Are you tired? Why should I be tired? (lit. tired at nothing!)
• E mau kau ana te taura, is barely fastened, i. e., it has only the name of being fastened.
• Ka mahi kau ahau, work without nothing.
• Tu kau, stand idle, naked, &c.

{95}

CHAPTER XI.
OF THE CONJUNCTIONS.

Me, while; Me te hongi, me te tangi, and saluting, and crying; i. e., while saluting he is crying.

With; [28] E mahi ana me te whakaaro ano ki te utu, he is working, and is at the same time mindful of payment.

• Inoi atu me te ngakau aroha, pray with a loving heart.
• Haere tahi me ia, went together with him.

As; Me koutou hoki i wakarere i to koutou kainga, as ye also left your country.

As far as; Me konei, me Waitemata, as far as from here to Waitemata.

If; Me he mea e pai ana, if he is willing. Me i kahore koe, if it had not been for you.

Ma, and, (a numeral conjunction.) vid. numerals, page 24.

{96}Mei, (Waikato) inasmuch as, as you may judge from, (vid. hoki. Same as ina hoki of Ngapuhi.)

Koia, therefore; koia i riri ai, therefore was he angry.

Na and a. These particles are of very great use in Maori. They correspond very closely with particle vāhv of Hebrew, and may be recognised in our translations as occupying the place of and, then, therefore, but, &c. Those who have not access to Professor Gesenius' Hebrew Lexicon, will, we are sure, read with pleasure his remarks upon its parallel in Hebrew. "It was a part of the simplicity of ancient language to mark merely the connexion of ideas, without expressing those nice distinctions of thought, which are designated by the use of causal, adversative, disjunctive, and other conjunctions. The prefix vahv retains this variety of signification, though other more definite conjunctions are also in use." This is precisely the case with Maori.

Ina, ua, (ana, Waikato) when; Ina korero ahau, when I speak.

If, (occasionally,) chiefly in cases in which contingency is attached to when:

• Ma wai e whai, ina tere? who is to follow it, (the canoe) if it drifts?

Heoi (Ngapuhi), and heoti (Waikato), is a particle which corresponds sometimes with a, and na, in its uses. It generally, however, implies opposition, and might be translated by but, &c. Sometimes also, it has the meaning of so, then, and sometimes, (particularly in Waikato,) it is, in the end of sentences, redundant.

Ara, and then, &c.; e. g.,

• Ara te meatanga atu a Hone, and then John replied.

Note.—This particle is very often used as an adverb for videlicet, forsooth, &c.

{97}

• Mona i tahae, because he stole.
• Inake ano, Inake ano i kore ai e tupu, a good reason indeed why it did not grow (thence, from that cause.)
• Ina whai ano (Waikato), idem.

• {98}Ahakoa; although, ahakoa roa noa te tohe e kore e marere, although you importune long it will not be granted.

Note.—Ahakoa will almost always precede in the sentence, e. g., The following "though we were sinners he loved us," should thus be rendered ahakoa hara noa tatou arohaina ana tatou e ia.

Following are a few examples of phrases which supply the place of conjunctions:

• Ki te kahore e pai, if he is not pleased.
• Ki te wa haere, if you go.
• Ka pa nau, if it had been yours.
• Ka pa tao (Ngapuhi) or tau (Waikato) na tatou, if it had been we that had done it.
• Patu, ka aha? If I beat him, what better will he be? lit. beat him, what is (effected?)
• I tika ano i a au, titiro ana koe wahia iho, I had put it all to rights, and you go and break it in pieces.
• E korerotia atu ana, e whakatika mai ana, he is spoken to, he rises up, i. e., when I speak to him, he rises up against me.
• Pera hoki me Hana e whakatoi nei, just as Hana teases.
• Mana ka tika, mana ka he, even though, (no matter whether,) it be right or wrong.
• Ko reira, then.

The particle ai is very useful in supplying the place of conjunctions. (Vid. our remarks on it.)

{99}

CHAPTER XII.
OF THE INTERJECTIONS.

Maori abounds in interjections. The following are the most common. It will be seen in this part of speech that there is a considerable variation in the different tribes.

INTERJECTIONS.

• For calling to another person near at hand, Ou! Ou!
• For reply to recall, O, (in a falsetto tone).
• For drawing attention to statements, things &c., &c.
  Inana! irara! ira! (Rotorua).
  Aiaiai! (Taranaki).
  Rere! Ere! nene! re! (Waikato).
  Nana! (Ngapuhi).
• For exciting attention, rara! (Waikato).
• Disapprobatory, E, e! He! hi! ha! aeha! ārārā. Ata! (Ngapuhi) Ae!

Exclamations made when it has been found that the speaker was correct, (corresponding to ah, you see! yes, to be sure, &c.) Na ra nei? Arără! haka! (Waikato,) aheiha (Ngapuhi,) ae ra hoki. That expressive of gratification at some misfortune having befallen another; Kaitoa!

• Of salutation to visitors, Haere mai, haere mai! Tauti mai, (Waikato). Nau mai, (Rotorua).
• {100}Salutation of one meeting another, Tena ra ko koe! or, Tena koe! (lit, that is you).
• In reply to a salutation, Ko koe ra! It is you!
• Of farewell, Hei konei, stop! Haere, go! E noho! ne? Remain! Will you?
• Of wonder, Aue! Eue! (Waikato) Taukiri e! A! He inati! (Waikato).

Besides these there are phrases which are often used as interjections; e. g.,

• Ka tae taku matua, &c.! Bravo, my father, &c., corresponding to our thank you.
• Ka tae he mamahi mau! what heavy work for you.
• Tauhou ki a Hone! (lit. stranger to John!) Oh yes, Mr. John.
• Ka mahi a Hone, idem.

Maori delights in interjectional and ironical sentences, and the student who desires to be a good speaker should pay them much attention, and study also to catch the tone of voice, &c.

Some, who have not noticed them, have turned an exclamation into a question, and thus altered the meaning of the sentence. "How many pigs of John have better food than I!" we have heard thus translated, E hia ranei nga poaka a Hone he pai ke ta ratou kai i taku, &c.? The translation here obviously differs from the original. It should have been, Ano te tini, or tini noa iho, or ka tae te tini, or kia tini, na, (or ano) te tini, or he tini nga poaka, &c.

And here we may observe that, in translating from another tongue into Maori, it would be perverting all use of language to render by merely a verbal correspondence, without any regard to the meaning; and that, in these idiomatic phrases, it would be best, unless we wish to establish the maxim of the French statesman,[31] "that language was merely intended to {101}conceal our feelings," to make our author employ those corresponding expressions in Maori which he would most probably have used had he been speaking in that language.

We may observe, in conclusion, that Maori has no good form for such optative interjections as would that, &c. There is, it is true, a kind of substitute; but it cannot be expressed by our present alphabet. It is formed by a sharp smack of the tongue against the palate, and na pronounced after it. The best form, for the present, is, perhaps, me i, with a peculiar tone of voice; e. g., Me i kite ahau ia ia! If I had but seen him! or would that I had, &c.

{102}

CHAPTER XIII.
OF THE SYNTAX.
PRELIMINARY REMARKS.

Before we proceed to the consideration of the Syntax of Maori, it will be necessary 1st. to explain some terms which we shall be obliged to employ, and 2ndly, to make a few remarks on the general features of Maori sentences. Some further remarks on this subject, we shall reserve till we come to treat on the verbs.

The subject of a proposition is that concerning which anything is affirmed or denied. The predicate is that which is so affirmed or denied of the subject. Thus, in the following sentence, Kua mate a Hone, John has died, Hone is the subject, and mate is the predicate.

Note.—We can scarcely recognize the verbal particles as copulas. We believe that their exclusive use is, to denote time.

Propositions, or sentences, we divided (page 37) into simple and compound. Another division is here necessary; viz., into complex and incomplex. An incomplex proposition is that whose subject and predicate are simple terms; e. g., He hoiho tenei, this is a horse.

{103}A complex proposition is that which contains some qualifying, or otherwise modifying, term in connexion with either subject or predicate; e. g., I mate a Hone ki reira. Ki reira, here, qualifies the predicate mate. He tokomaha nga Pakeha i Akarana, many are the foreigners in Auckland. Nga Pakeha i Akarana is the subject, and tokomaha the predicate.

He aroha no te Atua i ora ai tatou. This placed in due order, is "I ora ai tatou, he aroha no te Atua," we having been saved was a love of God. Here, I ora ai tatou is the subject.

Ko tou utu tena mo to hanganga i te whare? Is that your payment for your having built the house? Here, we conceive, ko tou utu mo to hanganga i te whare is the subject, and tena the predicate.

Epanorthosis is a figure of frequent occurrence in all languages, but particularly in those of the East. It is "the qualifying a former clause by the addition of another"[32] e. g., Ka tae te hohoro o ta tatou kai, te pau! what great haste our food has made; (I mean) the being consumed. Here te pau, is a clause qualifying the preceding; e rua tahi enei, he roa kau, there are two here, nothing but long; ringihia mai, kia nohinohi, pour me out some, let it be little, (i. e., pour me out a little); e rite tahi ana ia kia koe, te ahua, he is like you, (I mean,) the countenance; no reira a Ngatihau i tino mau ai, te karakia ai, that was the cause why Ngatihau were quite established, (I mean,) the not adopting Christianity. I riri au kia ia, kihai nei i whakaaro, I was angry with him, (I mean,) he did not exercise thought in that matter. Ko te tangata tenei, nana nga kakano, this is the man, his are the seeds; (i. e., this is the person whose are, &c.) He aha tau e mea, what is yours (actively) (I mean,) are doing? i. e., what are you doing? Haere ana Hone, me tana hoiho. Ka puta pea tena ki raro, e tihore ana. So John started and his horse. He has perhaps reached to the northward, (I mean,) is {105}peeling, (i. e., going along at a peeling, or rapid rate).

6thly. The student may be prepared to find the defect of the verb substantive supplied in various ways in Maori—by the article, the pronoun, the preposition, the adverb, and the verbal particles. Instances of ellipsis he will find in almost every page—ellipsis of the verb, of the noun, of the pronoun, &c., and, particularly, in our illustration of the preposition ki.

As distinctions between gender, number, case, and person, are very rare in Maori, and as, moreover, a main business of syntax consists in the adjusting of their several claims, we may hope that our work here will be neither complicated, nor extended.

{106}

CHAPTER XIV.
SYNTAX OF THE ARTICLE.

1. Ko is never used before appellatives without either te, te tahi, and its plural e tahi, or one of the possessive pronouns intervening, and it is almost always found to occupy the first place in the sentence; e. g.,

• ko taku tamaiti, this is my child.
• ko e tahi kua kitea, some were seen.

2. In this position a very common use of it is, to imply the verb substantive.

3. The article he, it will be seen, does not require its help for such a purpose; e. g., he rakau tenei, this is a tree; he mate toku, a sickness is mine, i. e., I am sick.

4. All the functions of a (vid. page 13) are performed by ko, when the noun, &c., to which it is prefixed, precede in the sentence; e. g.,

• Ko koe te haere, you are the person that is to go.
• Ko runga kau i kainga, the tops only were eaten.

5. Sometimes it will be found in other parts of the sentence, (a) when the terms, of which the sentence is composed, are convertible,[33] or are intended, at {107}least, to be represented as similar; e. g., ko te timunga atu o konei ko te pakeketanga o waho, the ebbing of the tide from here is low water outside.

• Me he mea ko Pahuru ko Ngakete, if Pahuru had been Ngakete, &c.
• Ko au ra ko ia, I and he are (one.)

(b) Sometimes, also, when there are two subjects of which the same thing is affirmed, ko will be prefixed to both; e. g.,

• Ko Kukutai ko te Wherowhero, rite tahi raua, Kukutai and Wherowhero, they are equal both of them.

6. It will be seen in the above example that ko will sometimes represent and; e. g., e takoto nei ko te pihi ko te poro, it lies here, both the piece, and the end (of the bar of soap.)

7. Very frequently, also, ko may be denominated "the article of specification and emphasis;" e. g., Noku tena paraikete, that blanket is mine; ko taku paraikete tena, that is my blanket. The former of these two sentences implies that the blanket is his property; the latter denotes the same thing, with some further specification; as being, for example, one that had been previously described, worn, &c.

Again, ko Hone i haere, John went.

• I haere a Hone, idem.

Here also, there is, we think, a difference. The latter sentence merely says that John went; the former that John, as contradistinguished from some one else, was the person who went; literally, it was John (who) went.

8. Sometimes also, in animated description, ko will follow the verb; e. g., na ka hinga ko Haupokia, na ka hinga ko Ngapaka, then fell Haupokia, then fell Ngapaka.

9. Ko will generally be prefixed to the subject,[34] {108}e. g., ko ta te tangata kai he poaka, he riwai, he aha, he aha, the food for man is pork, potatoes, et cætera, et cætera; ko Oropi te whenua taonga, Europe is the land of property.

N.B.—There are some exceptions to this rule, especially when tenei, &c., are employed. (vid. etiam rule 5.)

10. Ko is always prefixed to every title or name of men or things which stands alone without the verb; e. g.,

• "Ko te karere o Nui Tireni," the (Newspaper) the Karere o Nui Tireni.
• Ko Hone, here is John, or, John.

Note.—Occasionally we meet with an exception to this rule, in emphatic, elliptical, and complementary clauses; e. g., in taunting; tou ngene, your ngene[35]; taku tirohanga, my looking, i. e., when I looked. Ka whati tera, te pa, that was discomfitted, the pa. Vid. our illustrations of Epanorthosis in preliminary remarks, page 104.

11. It is sometimes used in elliptical sentences like the following: E pai ana ano; ko te maeke ra, we are willing; but the cold, i. e., we should be glad to go only for the cold; Haere ana ia, ko tona ko tahi, he went by himself alone.

Note.—It may be seen in the above example that ko is sometimes used for but; so also in the following: Me he mea ko te Paki, e rongo ratou; ko tenei e kore e rongo, if it had been Paki they would have listened, but as for this, they will not listen.

12. In connexion with the two preceding rules, we may observe, that ko is almost always prefixed to the nominative absolute; e. g., ko taua kupu au, e kore e rangona, as for that word of yours, it will not be listened to.

• Ko te hunga whakapono, ka ora ratou, believers, they will be saved.

N.B.—In some districts the ko is omitted under this rule.

{109}13. Nga we have designated as the plural of the definite article page 12. The student will therefore remember that it does not recognize the rules a, b, c, d, e, mentioned under te—pages 10 and 11.

14. The omission of the article.

There are some cases in which no article is prefixed to the noun, (a) when the noun follows immediately after the verb; e. g., Whakamate tangata, murderous; (vid. compound words page 17.) Haere po, go by night.

(b) Nouns preceded by the adverbial particles a and tua; e. g., tatau a tangata, count man by man.

(c) When a possessive pronoun is associated with the noun; ho mai toku kakahu, give me my garment.

Note.—It is, however, highly probable that the singular possessive pronouns, (vid. page 29.) are compounded of the article te, and the plural form oku, &c., and that oku, aku, ona, &c., are compounded of o and a, and the personal pronouns ahau, koe, ia: these pronouns assuming the forms of oku, ou, ona, &c., when in connection with o, and a; in the same way as they adopt the form of mona, nona, &c., when in combination with the prepositions mo, no, &c., &c. (vid. our remarks on noku and maku page 22, and tenei, &c., page 31.) Sometimes, indeed, we find the singular possessive pronouns thus resolved; e. g., kei tenei taha oku, on this side of me. If it had not been for nei the speaker would have said toku taha. The nei however attracts the te, and thus resolves toku into its component parts.

15. He differs in its uses from te tahi and e tahi.

(a) He, of itself, often implies the verb substantive. (Vid. rule 3).

(b) He is very seldom found after a preposition. It is almost always found in the nominative case after the substantive verb; e. g., he tangata tenei; he kino kau koutou.

Thus it would not be correct to say, I kainga, e he kuri, it was eaten by a dog; hei tiki i he rakau, to fetch a stick. It should be e te kuri, i te tahi rakau.

Note.—He is sometimes found after ma and na, e. g., nana i homai he paraikete i mahana ai au. We believe, however, that {110}this exception to rule (b) is only apparent, and that he waka, here, is the nominative case. (Vid. Verbs.)

16. A. A strange use of a is sometimes met with in Waikato. When two nouns follow each other in apposition, a is sometimes prefixed to the latter; e. g., Ka noho atu tera i te kai mana a te kahawai, he indeed will remain away from the food for him!—the kahawai!

E hoe ana ki Akarana, ki te kai mana a te paraoa, he is paddling to Auckland for food for himself—flour.

Sometimes it occurs in sentences like the following, Na wai tenei haere a te po? Whose going is this, (I mean,) in the night? i. e., who ever goes by night?

(b) A personal pronoun following the verb in the nominative will very seldom take a before it; e. g., Whakangaromia iho ratou. It would not be correct to say a ratou.

To this rule there are a few exceptions, e. g., tu ana ratou, a ia tangata a ia tangata, they stood each man.

(c) Proper names are not subject to the above rule; e. g., it would not be correct to say, Whakangaromia iho Ngatipaoa. It should be a Ngatipaoa.

(d) When a question is asked in reference to a preceding remark, a will precede the pronoun, e. g., E ki na koe. A wai? A koe ra, You assert—who? You, forsooth.

17. The articles, definite and indefinite, are always repeated in Maori, as in French, before every substantive in the sentence; e. g., Ko te whakapono te take o te aroha, raua ko te pai, faith is the root of love, and good works.

18. Adjectives used substantively require the article; e. g., He tika rawa te he ki a ia, the wrong is perfectly right in his opinion.

{111}19. Frequently, also, the article is prefixed to what would be a participle in English; e. g., Kei te noho, he is at the sitting, i. e., he is sitting; ka tata te maoa, the being cooked is near.

Note.—It is, however, probable that all such words as noho, &c., should, in constructions like the above, be regarded as substantives. We shall have to treat on this hereafter. (Vid. Verbs.)

Note 2.—Further remarks on the articles we shall reserve to the next chapter.

{112}

CHAPTER XV.
SYNTAX OF THE NOUN.

§ 1.—Nouns in Apposition.—These were partly considered in the last chapter, and we now proceed to offer further remarks respecting them:—

When one or more nouns follow another in apposition, and are equally definite in meaning, the same article that is prefixed to the first will be prefixed to all the rest; e. g., He tangata kino koe, he tangata kohuru, you are a bad man, a murderer; ko au tenei, ko tou matua, this is I, your father; mau mai taku pu, tera i roto i te whare, bring here my gun, that in the house.

The following sentences are erroneous:—Tenei ahau, ko to koutou hoa, te mea nei, this is I your friend, who says, &c.; Tiakina to tatou kainga, ko Waikato, take care of our settlement, Waikato; the ko should have been omitted in the former sentence: instead of the ko in the latter, we should have had a. Proper names, and pronouns, will only take their proper articles; e. g., Nohea tenei Kingi a Parao? whence was this King Pharoah?

N.B.—There are exceptions to these rules. Some of them will be mentioned under the next head.

§ 2.—The preposition, which is prefixed to the first of two or more nouns in apposition, will be prefixed to all the rest; e. g., Naku tenei pukapuka, na tou hoa, na Tarapipipi, this letter is mine, (i. e., was written by me,) your friend's, Tarapipipi's: kei nga Pakeha ta matou whakaaro, ta nga tangata Maori, {113}with the Europeans are the sentiments of us, of the New Zealanders.

The same usage holds in the vocative case, E hoa, E Hone, Friend John.

§ 3. And we may here state, that clauses in epanorthosis will frequently reject those rules of government which they, under other circumstances, would have recognised; and that they will often rather partake of the nature of an exclamation, (vid. chapter 14, § 10, note.) Thus in the example just adduced, to mamingatanga is not in the objective case, as is koe in the clause preceding. It would appear that after the speaker had said, Kua kite ahau i a koe, he recollected himself, and exclaimed, in explanation,—to mamingatanga hoki. In a leisurely constructed sentence he would most probably have said, "Kua kite ahau i a koe, i to," &c. Again, in the first example of epanorthosis (page 104), Ka tae te hohoro o ta tatou kai, te pau! a native would not say, o te pau, as strict grammar requires; but rather puts te pau in the form of an exclamation.

§ 4. The answer to a question will always, in its construction, correspond to the question; e. g., Na wai i tango? Na Hone, Who took it? John. I a wai taku pu? I a Hone, With whom was my gun? with John.

§ 5. There is no form in Maori corresponding to that contained in the following expressions, "Land of Egypt," "River Euphrates." To translate these by "Whenua o Ihipa," &c., would be to represent Egypt, and Euphrates, as individuals possessing that land, and that river. To render them by apposition would we fear not much improve our Maori diction; (though it would certainly be more in accordance with Maori analogy.) Here, therefore, necessity must make a law for herself, and recognize the former mode of construction as legitimate. At the same time, it is desirable that it should be adopted as seldom {115}as possible. Thus, in the following: "Mount Horeb," "Mount Sinai," &c., we should approve of "Mount" being rendered as a proper name, to which it closely approximates in English, and for which we think we may claim the permission of the original. We therefore approve of those phrases being rendered, "Maunga Horepa," "Maunga Oriwa," &c. Lastly; such forms as "the book of Genesis," &c., should never we think, be rendered by te pukapuka o Kenehi, &c.; for a native will, thereby, be led to believe that Genesis wrote the book. The difficulty, however, may be here easily obviated: for book may be altogether omitted, and "ko Kenehi" simply employed—a form, by the way, which is adopted by the Septuagint.

§ 6. The possessive case.—This case is much used in Maori. It is employed often to denote intensity; e. g., Ko to Ngatimaniapoto tangata nui ha ia! Oh, he is Ngatimaniapoto's great man; i. e., he is a very great man in that tribe.

It will, also, in some instances supersede the nominative or objective of the person; e. g., the following sentence is erroneous: kihai ahau i pai kia whakakahoretia ia, I was not willing to refuse him; this as it stands, means to despise or make a cipher of. It should have been, kia whakakahoretia tana; negative his. (request sub.)

§ 7. It is sometimes useful for denoting the time from which an action has commenced; e. g., kahore i kai, o to matou uranga mai ano, we have not eaten since we landed; Moe rawa atu ki Waitoke. Te haerenga atu o hea? We slept at Waitoke. From what place did you start? Te taenga mai o Hone, kihai i rongo. Te tononga iho o te ata, when John came here we would not listen to him; (though) he continued to ask from the break of day.

The possessive form is often used in predication; vid. syntax of verbs.

{116}§ 8. Often the possessive preposition is used where, in English, a different one would be employed; e. g., no Otahuhu tenei ara, this path (leads) to Otahuhu; kahore he wai o roto, there is no water in it. Ka kainga e to matua tane te roi o te tuatanga[36] ki te kainga tapu. Apopo ake ka kainga e te Ariki te roi o tana tamaiti, the fern root of the tuatanga is eaten by the father. Next day the fern of his child is eaten by the Ariki (head chief).

§ 9. A word in the possessive case occurring with another twice repeated, will generally follow after the first of such words; e. g., ki te tahi taha ona, ki te tahi taha, at either side of him; lit. at one side of him, at one side. Sometimes other words will be found to intervene between the possessive case and the word that governs it: e. g., ko nga tangata katoa tenei o Waimate,—here are all the men of Waimate.

§ 10. The word by which a possessive case is governed, is often not expressed in Maori; e. g., ka tokowha o matou ka mate, four of us have died; e wha nga rau o te kupenga a Hone, there were four hundred (fishes sub.) of the net of John; kei hea to Hone?—where is John's? (garment sub.)

§ 11. In the northern part of this island when a noun is placed in immediate connexion with such pronouns as noku, moku, &c., it will sometimes omit the article before it; e. g., no ratou Atua a Ihowa, whose God is the Lord; ka meinga mona wahi, appoint him a portion.

Note.—This form is rare in Waikato.

§ 12. When two substantives meet together, one of which denotes the material of which the other consists, or some quality belonging to it, the word denoting the material, quality, &c., will simply follow {117}the other as part of a compound word; e. g., he whare papa, a board house; ika moana, a sea fish; he repo hurakeke, a flax swamp; he oranga patunga, the survivors from a slaughter; he tangata kupu rau, a man of a hundred words; i. e., a deceitful person.

§ 13. Not unfrequently, when some circumstance or quality, is attributed to a person, it will be simply affirmed to be him; e. g., He uaua kiore koe, you are a rat's strength; he taringa whiti rua (or tua,) koe, you are an erring ear; i. e., one who does not hear correctly; he kaone tenei, this (heap of potatoes) is a gown; i. e., to purchase a gown; he aha koe? what are you? (i. e., what are you come for?) Ko au ra ko ia, I am he; i. e., he and I are of the same mind, &c.; ko taku iwituaroa tena, that is my backbone; (a form for making a thing sacred.)

Note.—This mode of predication seems to have been much in use amongst the Hebrews; vid. Gen. 41, 26. The seven good kine (are) seven years, and chap. 46, 34, "Every shepherd is an abomination;" "That rock was Christ;" "This is my body;" "Ye were once darkness," &c.

§ 14. Another particular, also, in which Maori will be found to resemble Hebrew is, the frequent substitution of the substantive for the adjective. Thus, we frequently hear, he kakakore koe, you are weakness; he kino te rangi nei, the sky is badness, &c., neither must the student imagine as have some in the interpretation of the Scriptures, that this mode of construction is always emphatic.

§ 15. The objective case almost always follows the verb; e. g., ka ngau i a au, he will bite me; except sometimes in sentences in which na, ma, &c. are used; e. g., nana ahau i tiki ake, he fetched me; noku ka mate.

Note.—This form will be considered hereafter, (vid. Verbs).

Sometimes a noun, which is plural in meaning, will take the form of the singular; e. g., ko nga tamariki {118}a Kaihau hei tamaiti ki a te Katipa, the children of Kaihau are a child to Katipa; i. e., stand in the relation of children.

§ 16. Compound Words.—A word in connection with a compound word will often be governed by one of the simples of which the latter consists; e. g. Kai atawhai i a koe; one to take care of you; koe here is governed by atawhai; ki te whenua kai mau, to the land of food for you; mau, here is influenced by kai.

§ 17. A verb can always be changed into a personal agent by prefixing kai; e. g., tiaki ia, to guard; kai tiaki ia, a guard.

§ 18. On the prefixing and omitting of the article te to proper names;

To lay down any exact rules respecting this subject is, we fear, impossible: neither, indeed, is it very necessary; as genuine Maori names are being fast exchanged for those of foreigners. There are, however, a few particulars which deserve notice. (a) A simple substantive, adopted as a proper name, may, or may not have te prefixed; chiefly as caprice regulates; (b) If, however, the noun be in the plural number te is never prefixed; e. g. Ngakainga; (c) A verb and words compounded of verbs, will generally omit it. e. g. Tangi: (d) Numerals, as far as ten, will generally take it: (e) The proper names which omit te will be found perhaps to be nearly double in number those which take it.

Note.—The prefixes rangi and ngati belong chiefly, the former to the names of females, the latter to the names of tribes.

On the distinction between o and a;

§ 19. This very useful feature of Maori does not seem to be clearly recognized in some parts of New Zealand. It obtains, however, in the other islands of these seas, and may be satisfactorily shewn, even now to exist in those parts of this island in which it would be least expected: for example; all will admit that {119}naku i patu, mine was the having struck; i. e., I struck (him), is different from noku i patu; because I struck him; and that ma te aha? will signify, by what means? and mo te aha? for what reason?

The words in which distinction obtains are mo and ma, no and na, o and a, and their compounds, mona and mana, nona and nana, toku and taku: the first and leading distinction between these two forms is (a) that o implies a passive meaning, a an active. Thus, he patu moku is, a striking for me, i. e., for me to suffer; he patu maku is an instrument for me to strike with, (b) o also implies the inherency, and propriety of a quality or thing, as well as the time and moral cause of an action.

Hence it will, almost always, be prefixed to the members of the body, to land enjoyed by inheritance, to sickness, the productions of nature, such as fruits, &c., &c. Thus, we seldom hear, āku ringaringa; nāku tena oneone; he mate nāku; o is almost always employed. Again, we always hear, noku i haere mai nei, since I came here; mou i tutu, because you were disobedient; nona te he, his was the error.

(c.) O is always employed in talking of garments and houses, which are in wear, use, &c. Thus, naku tena whare means, I built that house, Noku, &c., I dwell in it.

§ 20. A is prefixed to the agent, and implies that the noun, which is connected with that agent, is either an act of it, or an instrument with which, or sometimes a thing upon which the action is performed, such as tools, cultivations, food, words, &c., (as kupu, korero; because they are fashioned by the tongue); e. g., taku toki; naku tena mara, maku te kupu ki mua; kai mau.

§ 21. When the action is intransitive, o is generally employed; e. g. te toronga atu o te ringa o Hone; toku haerenga. To this rule, however, there are many exceptions.

{120}Note.—Visitors, slaves, or servants, children; (i. e. own children; or children of whom the individual has the management), husband, (tane), wife, (wahine), will take the a; when, however, hoa, ariki, rangatira, matua, whanaunga, are used, o will be prefixed. Reo also will take o; (the voice, being a part of the man). Oranga, also though it applies to food, will take o after it; e. g. kai hei oranga mo matou, food to support us. In the following passage "nona te whiunga i mau ai to tatou rongo," the chastisement of our peace was upon him, the o in the nona has, we think, supplied a more concise and clear rendering than could have been attained without it.—If it had been, "Nana te whiunga, &c.," we should have understood that it was he who inflicted, instead of suffered the chastisement. It should be remembered that there are two pronunciations of taku, and tana; viz., tăku, and tāku, tăna, and tāna; the short a corresponds to the o; the long a to the a of ma and na. Of tou, yours, there are also two pronunciations; viz., tou, and to, the former corresponds to the o of mona; the latter sometimes to the a of mana.

Note.—The to is very frequently used instead of the tou—chiefly in those parts of the sentence in which euphony requires that the sound should not be prolonged.

The importance of attending to these distinctions between the o and the a may be shewn by a few examples; he hangi mau, is an oven with which you may cook food; he hangi mou, is an oven in which you are to be cooked, and would be a most offensive curse; he taua maku is a party with which I may attack another; he taua moku, is a party come to attack me; te ngutu o Hone, is John's lip; te ngutu a Hone is his word, or report, &c.