The Muslim holy book the Qur'an has been translated into Te Reo Maori, an Eastern Polynesian language spoken almost exclusively within New Zealand.
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has been working on the translation project for more than 20 years and has translated just over half of the book. The 16 parts have been published into a book comprising of both the original Arabic text with Maori translation and was launched earlier today, the Pacific Media Watch website reported.
Dr Mohammad Shorab, local president of the Ahmadiyya Community, said he believed the translation of the Holy Qur'an was a great way to honour the community's motto: Love for all, hatred for none.
"Islam is a universal religion," said Dr Shorab.
"For that reason it is important to invest in other languages and traditions to gain a better understanding of the people around us."
Dr Shorab said the Qur'an was the most precious thing to Muslims and its translation into Te Reo not only shows Muslims' respect and regard for the Maori community, but was also a way to share with New Zealand something that was very special and meaningful to them.
Te Reo Maori
Seven distinct dialects are identified for the North Island alone — Rarawa, Ngapuhi, Waikato, Bay of Plenty, East Cape, Port Nicholson–Wanganui, and Wanganui–Mokau — with some variations within some of those.
By 2004, many of the minor dialects have probably declined almost to extinction, and most new students and speakers can be expected to use the official and/or Māori Television standards. However, regional variants are still apparent.
Dialects of Māori are nothing like the barrier to comprehension that many non-speakers believe. There are some regional variants of pronunciation and accent, and a small number of lexical differences, but it is basically a single language across New Zealand.
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has been working on the translation project for more than 20 years and has translated just over half of the book. The 16 parts have been published into a book comprising of both the original Arabic text with Maori translation and was launched earlier today, the Pacific Media Watch website reported.
Dr Mohammad Shorab, local president of the Ahmadiyya Community, said he believed the translation of the Holy Qur'an was a great way to honour the community's motto: Love for all, hatred for none.
"Islam is a universal religion," said Dr Shorab.
"For that reason it is important to invest in other languages and traditions to gain a better understanding of the people around us."
Dr Shorab said the Qur'an was the most precious thing to Muslims and its translation into Te Reo not only shows Muslims' respect and regard for the Maori community, but was also a way to share with New Zealand something that was very special and meaningful to them.
Te Reo Maori
Seven distinct dialects are identified for the North Island alone — Rarawa, Ngapuhi, Waikato, Bay of Plenty, East Cape, Port Nicholson–Wanganui, and Wanganui–Mokau — with some variations within some of those.
By 2004, many of the minor dialects have probably declined almost to extinction, and most new students and speakers can be expected to use the official and/or Māori Television standards. However, regional variants are still apparent.
Dialects of Māori are nothing like the barrier to comprehension that many non-speakers believe. There are some regional variants of pronunciation and accent, and a small number of lexical differences, but it is basically a single language across New Zealand.
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