Tongan man finds connection through te reo Māori
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Siaosi Lavelua, a 21-year-old Tongan man from Auckland, New Zealand, has spent five years learning te reo Māori, the Māori language.
He began studying the language at Auckland Grammar School seeking connection with other Pasifika and Māori students, finding that many aspects of Tongan and Māori languages are similar. Lavelua’s family runs Lav's ‘otai, a business selling a traditional Polynesian drink, and they regularly attend cultural events like celebrations at Waitangi Treaty Grounds.
Learning te reo Māori allowed Lavelua to connect with people at these events and strengthened his appreciation for his own Tongan language and culture. He now lives in Brisbane, Australia, where he works in marketing and hospitality, and finds that being further from New Zealand emphasizes the importance of celebrating Māori language week and identity.
Lavelua discovered historical connections between Māori and Pacific leaders, noting that figures like King Tāwhiao of New Zealand exchanged letters with Tongan and Hawaiian royalty to support each other’s sovereignty during colonisation. He believes this history demonstrates the deep interconnectedness of Pacific cultures. He encourages others to learn te reo Māori, advising them to embrace the learning process despite imperfections, using the whakataukī “Tūwhitia te hopo, mairangatia te angitū!”, “Feel the fear and do it anyway.”
