Toitū Te Reo, the world's first Māori language festival, will celebrate language, culture and the identity of Māori and wider New Zealand in the heart of Heretaunga, in the Hastings CBD on August 8-9 2024.

​

This uplifting celebration of all things Māori will offer a chance to taste Māori food, experience Māori culture, and to feel our national identity in a unique, welcoming environment.

​

Toitū Te Reo provides a platform for thousands of New Zealanders to come together and celebrate what the language means to us in Aotearoa. It will inspire, entertain, unite, challenge, excite, and activate.

​

Toitū Te Reo is a partnership between Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Inc, Hastings District Council and Te Matau-a-Māui based company Kauwaka, and has the support of Kīngi Tūheitia Pōtatau Te Wherowhero VII and iwi chairs from the top of the North to the bottom of the South Island. 

​

Toitū Te Reo is a long-held aspiration of respected te reo champion, Dr. Sir Tīmoti Kāretu and other te reo proponents, and the hui ā-motu held at Tūrangawaewae Marae in January was a catalyst for making this vision a reality. 

​

At the centre of the festival is the Toitū Te Reo symposium, Te Reo ki Tua, which has gone from strength to strength over seven years, featuring discussion panels of te reo experts, keynote speakers, spaces for fluent speakers to upskill, and spaces for people just starting to learn. 

 

Toitū Te Reo festival features free events including wānanga, a rangatahi poetry slam, food stalls, information stalls, a kōhanga reo space, a parent's retreat area, art trail, live demos, retail and street concerts. 

​

A festival highlight will be a ticketed all-star variety show with bi-lingual stand-up comedy, musicians and kapa haka.