Aotearoa New Zealand has two official languages (te reo Māori and New Zealand Sign Language), but we also have language responsibilities as a leader in the South Pacific (see the Ministry for Pacific People’s Languages Strategy), and a large number of other languages spoken across the motu.

Most common languages spoken in Aotearoa New Zealand

There are over 160 languages spoken in Aotearoa New Zealand and our population is becoming increasingly diverse. According to the 2018 Census, the most common languages spoken in Aotearoa New Zealand are listed below.

However, it is important that you do not base your decisions purely on national data as each context and target audience will be different.

It is also important to note that there are limitations to our Census data. There is no way of knowing an individual’s relationship with the language (for example, if they are native speakers, are proficient, or are learning the language, etc.) nor is it possible to tell definitively whether language proficiency is a barrier to communication.

Ministry for Ethnic Communities Data Dashboard

The Ministry for Ethnic Communities has developed a data dashboard, which draws on data obtained from the 2018 Census. It is an interactive tool that allows you access to information specific to ethnic communities in Aotearoa New Zealand. You can use the data dashboard to find comprehensive information on ethnicity, religion, and language at national and regional levels. The data dashboard is a valuable resource that allows ethnic communities to be seen and counted. 

Ethnic communities include anyone who identifies their ethnicity as Asian, Middle Eastern, Latin American, African, or Continental European.

The most spoken languages by ethnic communities in Aotearoa New Zealand are:

1. English
2. Northern Chinese (Mandarin)
3. Hindi
4. Yue (Cantonese)
5. Sinitic (other Chinese dialect)
6. Tagalog
7. Punjabi
8. Korean
9. Fijian Hindi
10. Afrikaans

Te reo Māori

Te reo Māori is special to Aotearoa New Zealand. It is one of our official languages and is a unique feature of our country that distinguishes us on the world stage. It is also the most spoken language in the country aside from English and, since 2018, the proportion of people able to speak more than a few words or phrases of te reo Māori has risen from 24% to 30%.

Translation and the availability of information and resources in te reo Māori is essential. By increasing visibility of messages in te reo Māori, government agencies, organisations and businesses are playing a small part in the continued revitalisation efforts and promotion of te reo Māori.

Maihi Karauna (The Crown’s Strategy for Māori Language Revitalisation 2019-2023)

In 2019, Maihi Karauna was released. This strategy sets out a bold vision for te reo Māori in the future, and sets out what actions the government will be prioritising over five years to move towards this vision.

We are at a critical fork in the road for te reo Māori. On one hand, there is growing demand from people across all ethnicities and walks of life to value, learn, and use the language. Communities of te reo Māori speakers around the country are taking dedicated action. There are also efforts being made by mainstream broadcasters, individuals and companies. On the other hand, te reo Māori remains listed as vulnerable in UNESCO’s Atlas of Languages. The proportion of Māori who are very proficient speakers has remained static at roughly eleven per cent between 2001 and 2013, though this group tends to be older than the rest of the speaker population.

The Crown is now actively committed to working in partnership with iwi and Māori to continue to protect and promote this taonga, the Māori language, for future generations. This strategy is different from others that have come before it. It is the first government strategy to be completed under Te Ture mō te Reo Māori 2016. The legislation recognises that iwi and Māori are kaitiaki of te reo Māori, while recognising that the Crown is able to advance the revitalisation of the Māori language by promoting strategic objectives in the wider New Zealand society.

Within this vision are three key outcomes. This is what we intend to see as a result of our efforts in a generation. These are:

• AOTEAROATANGA – NATIONHOOD - te reo Māori is valued by Aotearoa whānui as a central part of national identity. Te reo Māori offers an opportunity for a shared sense of national identity, and it is important that this is reflected in the activities of government. Building a national sense of value for te reo Māori is also important in creating favourable societal conditions for its revitalisation.
• MĀTAURANGA – KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS - Aotearoa Whānui has increased levels of knowledge, skill and proficiency in te reo Māori. The Crown has powerful levers through which it can influence this outcome, including its delivery of the formal education system.
• HONONGA – ENGAGEMENT - Aotearoa Whānui is able to engage with te reo Māori. Reo speaking environments need to be available to Aotearoa Whānui to use, see, hear and read te reo Māori as a living language. The Crown is able to influence this through various means, including through more accessible public services in te reo Māori and by supporting the development of bilingual towns and cities.

This strategy identifies three audacious goals that speak to critical parts of the three outcomes. The goals describe success in 2040 – one generation from now, and the 200-year anniversary of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. These goals are that by the year 2040:

• 85% of New Zealanders (or more) will value te reo Māori as a key element of national identity
• one million New Zealanders (or more) will have the ability and confidence to talk about at least basic things in te reo Māori
• 150,000 Māori aged 15 and over will use te reo Māori as much as English 

Accessing licenced Kaiwhakamāori (translators and interpreters)

The Māori Language Commission | Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori is authorised under the Māori Language Act 2016 to certify high-level translation and interpretation skills. Through the Te Taura Whiri translators and interpreters register, you can access certified translators.

New Zealand Sign Language

New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) is the other official language of Aotearoa New Zealand. There are around 23,000 people who use NZSL in Aotearoa New Zealand, and approximately 5,000 people who rely on it for communication.

Many Deaf people identify as members of a distinct linguistic and cultural group, who use New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) as their first or preferred language. Whether a Deaf person identifies with the Deaf community is a personal choice.

In 2006, the New Zealand Sign Language Act was passed to promote and maintain the use of NZSL. Compliance with the NZSL Act requires (so far as reasonably practicable) departments to promote government services and provide information to the public in NZSL. This means translating information about departmental services, and other key information (particularly important information relating to health and safety), into NZSL videos.

Translating information into NZSL videos enables Deaf people to access information independently at a time and place that is convenient to them. Quality NZSL translations, using video rather than text or images, are a valuable way to provide information in an accessible format for Deaf people.

Compliance with the NZSL Act also requires public sector agencies (so far as reasonably practicable) to book and pay for NZSL interpreting services whenever a meeting is required with a Deaf person. Trilingual interpreters (English/te reo Māori/NZSL) will be required if the spoken language is te reo Māori.

You should also consider translating your information into other alternate formats for disabled people and tāngata whaikaha Māori. As well as NZSL, this includes providing information in Easy Read, Large Print, Audio and Braille. You can find out more about the alternate formats and commission translations into them through the Ministry of Social Development | Te Manatū Whakahiato Ora.

Pacific languages

Around 8% of Aotearoa New Zealand’s population identify as being of Pacific ethnicity. The Ministry for Pacific Peoples (MPP) published the Pacific Languages Strategy 2022-2032 (the Strategy) in September 2022. The key objectives outlined in the Strategy include: recognising the value of Pacific languages across Aotearoa; strengthening pathways and resources for learning Pacific languages and learning in Pacific languages; and creating environments for Pacific languages to be used more often and in more spaces.

MPP supports and promotes the translation of important messages across the public sector into different Pacific languages. Specifically, the Strategy identifies three language groups: urgent revitalisation; strengthening transmission and maintenance; and supporting community led action for language revitalisation and maintenance.

Urgent revitalisation

• Te Gagana Tokelau (Tokelauan)
• Vagahau Niue (Niuean)
• Te reo Māori Kūki ‘Āirani (Cook Islands Māori)

This group is characterised by high levels of endangerment, low speaker numbers, low rates of intergenerational transmission, and strong constitutional ties to Aotearoa New Zealand. The largest populations of these groups are found in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Strengthening transmission and maintenance

• Gagana Samoa (Samoan)
• Lea Faka Tonga (Tongan)

This group is characterised by their relatively large populations and high numbers of speakers, but also their sharp decline in total speakers and low intergenerational transmission rates over time. This group is a high priority for language maintenance efforts.

Supporting community-led action for language revitalisation and maintenance

• Te Gana Tuvalu (Tuvaluan)
• Fäeag Rotuạm ta (Rotuman)
• Vosa Vakaviti (Fijian)
• Te Taetae ni Kiribati (Kiribati)

This group is characterised by smaller, emerging populations of speakers with some degree of formal relationship with Aotearoa New Zealand. There are smaller numbers of people from these communities who are Aotearoa New Zealand-born, and varying levels of language endangerment.