Speak Tahitian

PARAU TAHITI ‘OE? – Do you speak Tahitian?

There are only a few Tahitian words that have found their way into everyday conversation by English-speakers, but some characteristic expressions are commonly used by foreigners living in French Polynesia, such as, aita pe’ape’a , which means things couldn’t be better. The word popa’a is often used to refer to foreigners.

Even though French is the official language, why not learn a little Tahitian?

Greeting people

To say good morning to someone, say: ‘Ia ora na! (Good morning!). If they answer you with: E aha tō ‘oe huru?, which means, How are you?, you can answer: Maita’i (Good!), Maita’i roa (Very good!) or even Maita’i ri’i (Not bad.).

Saying Thank you

If you want to say “Thank you”, say: Māuruuru. If you want to say “No Thank You”, say ‘Aita māuruuru. To say “Thank you very much”, say Māuruuru roa!.

Saying Good bye

To say good-bye to someone, say: Nānā! (Until we meet again!)

Yes or No

To say Yes (a definite yes), say: ‘E!. To say Maybe (an indefinite, vague Yes,), say: ‘A!. To say “No“ (firmly with no chance of changing your mind), say: E’ita!. To say “No” in a normal and neutral way, say: ‘Aita!.

Glottal stop, the letter h, accents and misunderstandings

A glottal stop is regularly used in Tahitian. It is a genuine consonant just like the others, however, it is represented by a straight apostrophe (‘) instead of with letters. It is pronounced by emphasising the pronunciation of the following syllable. Make sure you know when and when not to use “h”.  In addition, vowels are long when they have an accent mark (ā, ē, ī, ō and ū). Depending on how you use these subtleties of pronunciation, the meaning may vary, much to the amusement of the Polynesians!

Examples:
– Te ū means milk but Te hū means fart

You have been warned!

Here’s little lexicon of Tahitian words and expressions