Māori Grammar

Talking about more than one person - ...rāua ko..., rātou ko...

In English, we can use "and" to talk about more than one person: "Peter, Paul and Mary".

In te reo Māori, there is a specific way to do this.

When there are only two people, and we are talking about people other than ourselves, we use rāua ko:

Kei te haere a Rangi rāua ko Hemi ki te papa tākaro.
Rangi and Hemi are going to the playground.

Ko Brian rāua ko Fran ōku mātua.
Brian and Fran are my parents.

Where there are more than two people, and we are talking about poeple other than ourselves, we use rātou ko... ko...

Kei te waiata a Peter, rātou ko Paul ko Mary.
Peter, Paul and Mary are singing.

When you are speaking about yourself and someone else, we do not say "me". Intead, you would use māua ko if you are just talking about you and another person, and mātou ko... ko... if you are talking about you and two or more other people:

I taraiwa māua ko taku hoa.
Me and my friend drove.

Māua ko Amaru.
Amaru and me.

Mātou ko tōku whānau.
Me and my family.

I haere mātou ko Rangi ko Hemi.
Me and Rangi and Hemi went.

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Talking about more than one person

rāua ko..., rātou ko... ko...

Ko Pāora rāua ko Ataahua ngā mokopuna o Hēmi rāua ko Aria.
Pāora and Ataahua are the grandchildren of Hēmi and Aria.

Mātou ko ōku hoa.
My friends and I.

Ko ia te mea hangareka o rāua ko Riripeti, tōna tuahine.
She is the funny one between her and Riripeti, her sister.

I āwhinatia rātou e mātou ko aku tēina.
They were helped by me and my younger siblings.

Kei te moe a Angie rāua ko Raiha.
Angie and Raiha are sleeping.

Kei te katakata a Pāora rāua ko Tame.
Pāora and Tame are laughing.

He mātua a Pani rāua ko Hata,.
Pani and Hata are parents.

Kei te haere a Ataahua rāua ko Taika.
Ataahua and Taika are going.

Ko Ari rāua ko Kauri ngā hoa o Manu rāua ko Aroha.
Ari and Kauri are the friends of Manu and Aroha.

Ko Brian rāua ko Fran ōku mātua.
Brian and Fran are my parents.

Mā mātou koutou e manaaki.
We will take care of you.

Kei te haere a Amaru rāua ko Hēmi mā runga i te motukā.
Amaru and Hēmi are travelling by car.

Ko Aidan rāua ko Liam
Aidan and Liam

Nō te wā o te piringa o Rangi rāua ko Papa ka tupu te werawera, ka rērere te kohu.
At the time of the union of Rangi and Papa, the heat grew, the mist rose.

Ko Jacob rāua ko Hana āku tamariki.
Harnah and Jacob are my children

I taraiwa māua ko taku hoa ki te whare wānanga.
Me and my friend drove to uni.

Kei te hui a Niko rāua ko Tawa ki te pātaka kōrero.
Niko and Tawa are meeting in the library.

Ko Hana rāua ko Jacob
Harnah and Jacob

Ko Tanya rāua ko Sarah
Tanya and Sarah

Kei mua a Miriama rāua ko Rehutai i te pahi.
Miriama and Rehutai are in front of the bus.

I hea a Miti rāua ko Auau?
Where were Miti and Auau?

Mia rāua ko tōna hoa.
Mia and her friend.

Kei te kura rātou ko Hata ko Pani ko Mere.
They and Hata, Pani and Mere are at the school.

Ko Mere rāua ko Lennon āku tamariki.
Mere and Lennon are my children.

No Te Kaha mātou ko Hata mā.
Hata and I and the rest are from Te Kaha.

Kei te waiata a Peter, rātou ko Paul ko Mary.
Peter, Paul and Mary are singing.

I roto rāua ko Mere i te whare.
He and Mere were in the house.

Nō Te Waipounamu, engari kei konei mātou ko tōku whānau e noho ana.
From the South Island, but my family and I are staying here.

I haere mātou ko aku hoa mā runga i te waka o Betsy ki te takutai, ki Te Māhia.
Me and my friends went on Betsy's car to the beach, to Māhia.

I hararei mātou ko aku hoa.
My friends and I had a holiday.

Kua tūtaki au ki a Tawa rāua ko tana hoa wahine, ko Ani.
I have met Tawa and his girlfriend, Ani.

Nō mua i te piringa ki a Rangi, ka moe a Papa rāua ko Tangaroa.
Before the union with Rangi, Papa was in a relationship with Tangaroa.

Ko Hone rāua ko Rāhera ōku hungawai.
Hone and Rāhera are my parents-in-law.

Nō muri noa mai ka whānau mai ngā tamariki a Tame rāua ko Mia.
The children of Tame and Mia were born much later.

E tākaro ana a Kauri rāua ko Hera.
Kauri and Hera are playing.

Arā, ko au te tama a Hone rāua ko Rāhera.
That is, I am the child of Hone and Rāhera.

Ko Rāwiri rāua ko Tūmanako aku tama.
Rāwiri and Tūmanako are my sons.

Ko Pita rātou ko Aroha ko N3 āku tamariki.
Pita, Aroha and N3 are my children.

Kei te tangi a Mereana rāua ko Paul.
Mereana and Paul are crying.

Ko rātou ko ō rātou hoa ngā mea ngaro.
They and their friends are the missing ones.

Tokorima. Ko aku mātua, mātou ko taku tuakana, ko taku tungane.
Five. My parents, (me) and my older sister and my brother.

Ko Honi rāua ko Rangi ō tāua hoa.
Honi and Rangi are our friends.

Ko Rāwiri rātou ko Tūmanako, ko Rongomai, me tana tāne a Moana, aku mokopuna.
Rāwiri, Tūmanako, Rongomai, and Moana, her husband, are my grandchildren.

I taraiwa māua ko taku hoa.
Me and my friend drove.

Ko Ari rāua ko Aria.
Ari and Aria.

Kei Pōneke māua ko Sarah.
Sarah and I are in Wellington.

Kua mate māua ko taku teina.
My younger sibling and I are sick.

Ko Billy rāua ko Bob ā rāua māhanga.
Their twins are Billy and Bob.

Ko Sally rāua ko Tīmoti ōku mātua.
My parents are Sally and Timoti.

Ko Val te tamāhine a Una rāua ko Vic.
Val is the daughter of Una and Vic.

Ko Isaac te tama a Phill rāua ko Angie.
Isaac is the son of Phill and Angie.

Ko Moki rāua ko Tū-te-kawa ngā rangatira.
Moki and Tu-te-kawa were the chiefs.

Māua ko Rangi.
Rangi and me.

Kei te haere a Raureka rāua ko Te Naera.
Raureka and Te Naera are going.

I te ata o te Rāhoroi ka haere mātou ko taku whānau ki Taranaki ki te whakatā.
On Saturday morning my family and I went to Taranaki for a holiday.

E whakarongo ana māua ko Paora ki te tumuaki.
Paora and I are listening to the head-master.

I tērā tau ka haere mātou ko aku hoa ki Pōneke ki te tirotiro haere.
Last year me and my friends went to Wellington to look around.

Ko Kayte rāua ko Denis, ko Beverley
Kayte and Denis and Beverley

Ko Hone rāua ko Rāhera ōku mātua.
Hone and Rāhera are my parents.

Ko Jim rāua ko Doug aku taokete.
Jim and Doug are my brother in laws.

Ko Rāwiri rāua ko Tūmanako ōku tungāne.
Rāwiri and Tūmanako are my brothers.

Ko Rongomai rāua ko Moana ōku mātua.
Rongomai and Moana are my parents.

Ka haere māua ko Manu ki te hokomaha tiki ai.
Manu and I are going to the supermarket to shop.

Ko Pita rātou ko Paul, ko Mere.
Peter, Paul and Mere.

He hoa piritahi rāua ko Rāwiri.
He and Rāwiri are best friends.

Nā wai a Papa rāua ko Rangi i whakawehe?
Who separated Papa and Rangi?

Kei roto a Kahurangi rāua ko Hōhepa i tō rāua whare.
Kahurangi and Hōhepa are inside their house.

Ko Flo rāua ko Rāwiri ōku kaumātua.
Flo and Rāwiri are my grandparents.

Ko Brian rāua ko Fran ōku mātua
Brian and Fran are my parents

Ko Nikau te tamaiti kei waenganui i a Koa rāua ko N3.
Nikau is the child between Koa and N3.

Ko Chris te tama a Richard rāua ko Gin.
Chris is the son of Richard and Gin.

Ko Tīwana rāua ko Riripeti aku irāmutu.
Tīwana and Riripeti are my nieces/nephews.

Ehara a Amaru rāua ko Rina i te mātua.
Amaru and Rina are not parents.

Ko Aidan rātou ko Kaia, ko Liam
Aidan and Kaia and Liam

Mātou ko Hata.
Hata and the rest of us.

Ko Ani rāua ko Mere.
Ani and Mere.

Ko Pāora rāua ko Tame kei te haere ki te tāone.
Pāora and Tame are going to town.

Ko Brooklyn te mokopuna a Lynne rāua ko Barry.
Brooklyn is the grandchild of Lynne and Barry.

Ko Moana te tamāhine a Nikau rāua ko Ataahua.
Moana is the daughter of Nikau and Ataahua.

He mātua pai a Taika rāua ko Aria.
Taika and Aria are good parents.

Koutou ko tōu whanau.
You and your family.

Ko Rāhera rāua ko Hone ōku tūpuna.
Rāhera and Hone are my ancestors.

E hui ana a Rama rāua ko Pita ki te pātaka kōrero.
Rama and Pita are meeting in the library.

Ko Tai, ko Moana rātou ko Rangi.
Tai, Moana and Rangi.

Ka kōrero ia ki a māua ko Mere.
He spoke to Mere and me.

Kei te oma a Mere rātou ko Hariata, ko Matiu, ko Ropata.
Mere, Hariata, Matiu and Ropata are running.

Ko Timi rāua ko Jen aku mātua.
Timi and Jen are my parents.

Kei te kanikani a Ataahua rāua ko Taika.
Ataahua and Taika are dancing.

Ko Niko rāua ko Kauri ngā mātua o Rangi.
Niko and Kauri are the parents of Rangi.

Ko Raureka rāua ko Tūhawaiki ngā mātua.
Raureka and Tāhawaiki are the parents.

Ko Aroha rāua ko Timi ana mātua.
Aroha and Timi are her parents.

Ākuanei ka haere māua ko Amaru ki te tiki i a Hēmi.
Soon Amaru and I will go to fetch Hēmi.

Ko Piripi rāua ko Miriama ōku mātua.
Piripi and Miriama are my parents.

I hiahia a Niko rāua ko Tawa ki te tūtaki i a rāua anō.
Niko and Tawa wanted to meet each other.

I taraiwa māua ko taku hoa ki te whare wānanga i te waru karaka.
Me and my friend drove to uni at 8 o'clock.

Ko Liam te mokopuna a Beverley rāua ko Denis.
Liam is the grandchild of Beverley and Denis.

Ko Aroha rāua ko Ani ōku tuāhine.
Aroha and Ani are my sisters.

Nō muri i te piringa o Rangi rāua ko Papa ka whānau mai ngā tamariki.
After the union of Rangi and Papa, the children were born.

Rātou ko ōna hoa.
She and her friends.

Ehara ngā rangatira i a Moki rāua ko Tū-te-kawa.
Moki and Tū-te-kawa were not the chiefs.

Mā mātou koutou e manaaki.
We (3+ exclusive) will take care of you.

Ko Riripeti rāua ko Tīwana āku irāmutu.
Riripeti and Tīwana are my nieces/nephews.

Ka kōrero māua ko Mere ki a ia.
Mere and I spoke to him.

Kei te haere a Riria rāua ko Larisa ki konā
Riria and Larisa are going there (by you the listener).

Kei muri a Miriama rāua ko Rehutai i te pahi.
Miriama and Rehutai are behind the bus.

I mahi māua ko tōku māmā.
My mother and I (us two, but not you the listener) worked.

Ko māua ko Mere ngā kaiāwhina.
Mere and I are the helpers.

I hea a Retitia rāua ko Mihinui?
Where were Retitia and Mihinui?

I muri i te piringa o Rangi rāua ko Papa ka whānau mai ngā tamariki.
After the union of Rangi and Papa the children were born.

Mātou ko tōku whānau.
Me and my family.

Ko Rāwiri rāua ko Tūmanako ōku taokete.
Rāwiri and Tūmanako are my twins.

Kei te hui a Rama rāua ko Pita ki te pātaka kōrero.
Rama and Pita are meeting in the library.

Ko Hone rāua ko Rāhera ōku mātua
Hone and Rāhera are my parents.

Ko Barry rāua ko Lynne ōku mātua.
Barry and Lynne are my parents.

Ko Rāhera rāua ko Tipene ōna hoa.
Her friends are Rāhera and Tīpene.

Kei roto a Mia rāua ko Kauri i tō rāua whare.
Mia and Kauri are inside their (2x) house.

Koa rātou ko tōna whanau.
Koa and his family.

Māua ko tōku hoa.
My friend and I.

Ko Riripeti rāua ko Tīwana ā māua tamariki.
Riripeti and Tīwana are our children.

I tērā tau i te marama o Mahuru ka haere mātou ko aku hoa mai i Papaioea ki Pōneke ki te tirotiro haere.
Last year in September me and my friends went from Palmerston North to Wellington to look around.

Kei te haere atu rātou ko Hone, ko Hōhepa, ko Tai.
Hone, Hōhepa and Tai are going.

Ko Hera te mokopuna a Pāora rāua ko Mia.
Hera is the grandchild of Pāora and Mia.

Kei te ako a Pita rāua ko Aroha i ngā kupu whānau i te reo Māori.
Pita and Aroha are learning Māori 'family' words.

Ko Tai rāua ko Moana ngā ingoa o ōku hoa.
The names of my friends are Tai and Moana.