ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

māori language day

Okay kiddo, today we're going to learn about Māori Language Day! Māori is a language spoken by some people who live in New Zealand. Just like how some people speak Spanish or Chinese or French, some people in New Zealand speak Māori.

Māori Language Day is a special day when people celebrate the Māori language and try to learn more about it. It's kind of like a birthday party for the language! People might do things like learn new words in Māori, listen to music or stories in Māori, or even try to have conversations in Māori.

Why do people celebrate Māori Language Day? Well, a long time ago Māori was the main language spoken in New Zealand, but then lots of people from other countries came to New Zealand and started speaking English instead. This means that over time, fewer and fewer people spoke Māori. But some people wanted to make sure that the language didn't disappear completely, so they started working hard to teach it to more people and make sure it was used more often. And that's how Māori Language Day was born!

So now, on September 14th every year, people come together to celebrate and learn about Māori language and culture. It's a way to show that even if a language isn't spoken by everyone, it's still important and worth celebrating. Cool, huh?