Mīria Simpson - "Te Taniwha o Te Reo"

To celebrate Māori Language week our daily instalments are back! This year we’ll be featuring inspirational Māori leaders from the Eastern Bay of Plenty.

Miria Simpson, Ko Ngāti Awa te iwi, Ko Ngāi Taiwhakaea te hapū, Ko Te Rangihouhiri te marae

Mīria Simpson was one of Māoridom’s guardians and advocates of te reo, and a renowned kuia of Ngāti Awa. Her formidable nature and passion for accuracy of te reo Māori led to Miria being named “Te Taniwha o Te Reo”

She made a vital contribution to the preservation of te reo Māori in numerous forums, including the National Library, the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography and Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori – The Māori Language Commission.

But her love of language, and her command of it, was not restricted to Māori, her first language. She was just as dedicated to English and its delivery.

As former fellow commissioner and broadcaster Waihoroi Shortland noted, her love for both languages bordered on the fanatical, and she took no prisoners in her defence of her standards.

It didn't matter whether her target was a 2-year-old kohanga student or an 80-year-old kaumatua. Having made her point, she would then minister recovery procedures.

Born in Whakatāne of Ngāti Awa and Mataatua descent, Simpson was the longest-serving member of the Māori Language Commission. She was awarded a QSM in 1991 and was awarded a doctorate by Victoria University for her services to Te Reo Māori.

Simpson was assistant editor of volume one of the Māori publication Ngā Tangata Taumata Rau (Dictionary of New Zealand Biography), published in 1990, and editor, Wahanga Māori, for the Historical Atlas of New Zealand. She also wrote Ngā Tohu o Te Tiriti: Making a Mark.

Miria was a member of the Waiariki representative executive council for the Māori Women's Welfare League from 1965 to 1969, and was an early representative on Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Awa.