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He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tangata, he tangata, he tangata: what is the most important thing in the world? It is people, it is people, it is people.

Māori proverb / whakataukī

ProverbsPhilosophyLanguage

The story behind the card

This whakataukī, or Māori proverb, from New Zealand is often spoken at gatherings, in schools and in speeches. It is traditionally credited to Meri Ngaroto, a 17th-century woman of the Te Aupōuri tribe in the far north, as the end of a longer saying that asks where the bellbird would sing if the heart of the flax plant were torn out. Repeating 'he tangata' three times is a Māori way of speaking for emphasis.

Türkçe oku
He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tangata, he tangata, he tangata: Dünyadaki en önemli şey nedir? İnsandır, insandır, insandır.
Maori atasözü / whakataukī

Yeni Zelanda'daki Maorilerin bir whakataukī'si, yani atasözüdür; toplantılarda, okullarda ve konuşmalarda sık sık söylenir. Geleneğe göre 17. yüzyılda ülkenin kuzey ucunda yaşayan Te Aupōuri kabilesinden Meri Ngaroto'ya aittir ve daha uzun bir sözün sonudur: O söz, keten bitkisinin göbeği koparılırsa çan kuşunun nerede öteceğini sorar. “He tangata” sözünün üç kez tekrarlanması, Maori hitabetinde vurgu yapmanın bir yoludur. Türkçede Şeyh Edebali'ye atfedilen “İnsanı yaşat ki devlet yaşasın” sözü de insanı her şeyin önüne koyar.

Sources and further reading

Background reading: Māori culture
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