my maori name
kia ora,
i'm entering my third week at my new job as a "communications assistant" at the office which oversees the education and training of caregivers and healthcare providers. i write letters and proofread documents that use words i sometimes don't understand--sometimes because those words are jargon related to the caregiving industry, and sometimes because parts of the documents are written in the maori language. while frantically bringing myself up to speed on the appropriate ways to construct a letter with maori greetings, i learned that everyone at my office has both an english job title and a maori job title.
so last week, i was sent to laurie's office to receive my maori name. he spent some time asking me about what i do and how i feel about my job, and he came up with this: "kai tuhi," which roughly translates as "to convert symbolism into expression." the communications team as a whole is called "ngati tiwai," (which means "the people of the heart of the tree") so my full title is "kai tuhi o ngati tiwai."
i asked laurie if i could keep my name even after i leave new zealand. i don't think anyone has ever made that request before, so he didn't quite have an answer. but he didn't say no, so that settles it--i'm keeping my name.
mauri ora,
kai tuhi
posted by della on
Sunday, April 29, 2007
3 Comments:
i like it della.
do you pronounce it with a short a
long i and silent h?
i also like the job title!
By
Anonymous, at 11:16
Interesting...to try to communicate...in two languages and in a technical field within a different culture. : ) egroeg
By
Anonymous, at 21:39
Wow, how exciting to have the opportunity to experience this type of challenge. I think you will do great.
Great name as well.
Jean
By
Anonymous, at 07:31
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