Languages in New Zealand - What Languages Are Spoken?

While English is the primary spoken language in New Zealand, there are other languages and dialects in the country. Once you reach New Zealand, knowing English properly can be a great advantage since most of New Zealand’s people speak English. The island country in the Southern Pacific Ocean has people from all over the world as part of its population, causing an extensive collection of languages to become prevalent. In 2006, New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) was declared one of New Zealand's official languages other than English and Maori. As a result, New Zealand became the first country to declare sign language as an official language.

New Zealanders are free to speak in any of the three official languages in New Zealand for legal proceedings, be it English, Maori, or NZSL. More than ninety-five percent of New Zealand’s population is estimated to predominantly speak English, while a little above four percent speak in Maori. The remaining comes close to one percent, and they speak either NZSL or any other New Zealand language used by minority ethnic communities.

Among the large variety of immigrant languages in New Zealand, including Samoan, Hindi, Mandarin Chinese, French, and Yui Chinese, they are considered the most popular. Now, let’s have a deeper look into the languages in New Zealand: 

New Zealand English

The first language of the largest share of the population, New Zealand English (NZE) is the term for the variant of the English language in New Zealand. In 1841, the Maori signed the ‘Treaty of Waitangi’ to establish British governorship in New Zealand, leading to British Isles arriving in large numbers. The variant was recognized by at least 1912, soon after the number of settlers from Europe in New Zealand reached a million in 1911.

Maori

The Maori language is often referred to as ‘te reo’ in New Zealand. It is the language of the Maori people, the country's earliest inhabitants. Though settlers of Eastern Polynesian descent, they cultivated their own unique culture, and hence, their language also evolved to become completely independent of any other Eastern Polynesian culture. Declared as the de jure (legally recognized) official language in 1987, Maori is used nowhere except in New Zealand.

New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL)

The main language of New Zealand’s deaf community, New Zealand Sign Language, can convey ideas from both English and Maori. The origins and influence of the language are credited to British Sign Language (BSL) and Australian Sign Language(Auslan). Crafted by and for deaf people, it’s been over a hundred years since New Zealand Sign Language has come into use.  

Other Languages in New Zealand

According to the 2018 census, Samoan, Northern Chinese, and Hindi are among the most common languages in New Zealand. French is also hugely popular. Korean, German, Spanish, Dutch, etc., are also spoken by or known to a moderate number of people. In the 2013 census, the multilingual population of New Zealand was close to nineteen percent.

In the comments, share your thoughts about the extensive range of languages in New Zealand below.