He tohu aratohu mō ngā kaiwhakawhiti reo e whai ana ki te hono i te reo o te motu o Aotearoa ki te reo o te Whenua o ngā Awa me ngā Mauka. Ko te mahi whakawhiti i ēnei reo e rua he matapihi e kitea ai ngā ao tino rerekē e rua, ā, he tino whakamātautau hoki mō te hunga mahi whakawhiti reo e rapu ana i te tauritetanga ā-reo me te ā-ahurea.
Te Huringa Wetereo: Te Wehenga o te Ara VSO me te Ara SVO
Ko te whakawhiti i te reo Māori ki te reo Rao (Lao) he huarahi whakawero e hiahia ana kia mārama te kaiwhakawhiti ki ngā hanganga wetereo rerekē o ngā reo e rua. Ko te reo Māori, he reo nō te whānau Aonihina (Austronesian), e whai ana i te hanganga wetereo Kupu Mahi - Kaimahi - Kume (Verb-Subject-Object / VSO). Hei tauira, ki te kī tatou "Ka hanga te tohunga i te waka," ko te kupu mahi "hanga" te mea tuatahi, ka whai mai ko te kaimahi "te tohunga", a, ko te kume "i te waka" kei te mutunga. He rerekē rawatu tēnei ki te reo Rao, he reo nō te whānau Kera-Tai (Kra-Dai), e whai ana i te hanganga Kaimahi - Kupu Mahi - Kume (Subject-Verb-Object / SVO), pēnei i te reo Pākehā. Ki te kore te kaiwhakawhiti e tautuhi i ēnei raupapatanga kupu, ka poka kē te tikanga, ka kore rānei e mārama ki te hunga pānui o Rao.
I tua atu i tēnei, ko te reo Rao he reo tātaritanga (isolating language). Kāore ōna kupu e huri i te hanganga mō te wā, te nama (takitahi/takimaha), te ira rānei. Ko te tikanga o tēnei, he mea nui te whakamahi i ngā kupu tohu (particles) hei whakaatu i te wā me te ahunga o te kōrero. I te reo Māori, ka whakamahia ngā matā reo pēnei i te "kua", "ka", "e... ana", me te "i" hei whakaatu i te ahua o te wā (aspect/tense). Ki te whakawhiti ki te reo Rao, me tātari te kaiwhakawhiti i te horopaki katoa kia kitea ai te kupu tohu Rao e hāngai ana, pēnei i te "dāi" (kua hipa) ki te aroaro o te kupu mahi, te "kam-lang" (e mahi ana) rānei hei whakaatu i te mahi kei te haere tonu.
Ngā Kupu Tohu Rahinga me te Pūnaha Tōiri
Ko tētahi atu wero wetereo ko te whakamahi i ngā kupu tohu rahinga (classifiers) i roto i te reo Rao, e kīia ana ko "laksananam". I te reo Māori, ka kī noa tatou "e rima ngā whare" rānei, "e toru ngā tangata". Engari i te reo Rao, me kī "whare + rima + tohu whare" (hen + ha + lang) me te "tangata + toru + tohu tangata" (khon + sam + khon). Ko te kore e whakamahi i ēnei tohu rahinga he tohu nō te hunga kāore i te mōhio ki te reo. Ma tēnei rerekētanga e here ai te kaiwhakawhiti ki te ako i te katoa o ngā kupu tohu rahinga mō ngā momo ingoa katoa kia kore ai e tauhou te pānui.
He reo tōiri (tonal language) hoki te reo Rao. Ahakoa he tuhituhi te whakawhiti reo, me whai whakaaro te kaiwhakawhiti ki ngā tohu tōiri me te tikanga o te tohu tuhi i ngā kupu Rao. Ma te rerekē o te tohu tōiri ka rerekē katoa te tikanga o te kupu. Mo te reo Māori, ahakoa te whakamahi i te tohu tohutō (macron) hei tohu i te oro roa, kāore he pūnaha tōiri pēnei i to te reo Rao. No reira, me tūpato te kaiwhakawhiti kia tika ai te whakatakoto i ngā kupu Rao i runga i te tuhituhi kia kore ai e puta he tikanga hē, ā, kia ataahua ai hoki te huringa o te reo kōrero.
Tikanga me te Ahurea: Te Hononga i waenga i te Ao Māori me te Ao Rao
Ko te hunga kōrero i te reo Māori me te hunga kōrero i te reo Rao e whai ana i ngā ahurea e kaha ana te whakaute ki te wairua, ki te taiao, me ngā tūpuna. Heoi, he rerekē ngā whakaaturanga o ēnei ariā i roto i ngā reo e rua. Mō te ao Māori, ko ngā kupu pēnei i te "mana", "tapu", me te "mauri" he pou matua nō te ao wairua me te ao tōrangapū. Me pēhea ēnei e whakawhiti ki te reo Rao? I te ao Rao, he tino kaha te awe o te whakapono Buddhism me te whakapono animist ki ngā "phi" (ngā wairua o te taiao me ngā tūpuna).
Hei tauira, ka taea te whakaaro ki te kupu Māori "mauri" (the life force). I te reo Rao, he kupu rānei e rite ana? Ko te kupu "khwan" (te wairua ora kei roto i te tinana o te tangata, i te taiao rānei) he mea rite tonu. Ki te ngaro te khwan, ka māuiui te tangata, e rite ana tēnei ki te māuiui o te mauri o te tangata. Waihoki, ko te kupu "mana" (prestige/power) ka taea te whakataurite ki te kupu "barami" (he mana morare nō te taha ki te Buddhism), ki te "am-nat" (mana ā-tinana, mana tōrangapū rānei) rānei. Ko te kaiwhakawhiti whai mana me whakamārama i tēnei mōhiotanga ahurea ki roto i te reo Rao, mā te whiriwhiri i te kupu e tika ana mō te horopaki, kaua ki te whakawhiti kupu noa.
Te Whakahonore me te Rēhita Reo
Ko tētahi atu āhuatanga me matua tātari ko te rēhita o te reo. Ko te reo Rao he reo e whai ana i te pūnaha rēhita tino uaua i runga i te hierarchy o te hapori. He rerekē ngā kupu mō te "koe" rānei, mō te "kai" rānei i runga i te rangatiratanga o te tangata e pā ana te kōrero. Hei tauira, mō ngā monahi (monks) me te whānau ariki (royalty), he reo motuhake e kīia ana ko "rajasap". Ahakoa he reo whakaute te reo Māori, pēnei i te whakamahi i te "koe" mō te tangata kotahi me te "kōrua" / "koutou" mō te tokomaha, kāore he pūnaha rēhita pēnei i te reo Rao mō te hunga whai mana hapori motuhake. Me whakarite te kaiwhakawhiti i te reo Rao kia tau ai te rēhita ki te horopaki Māori taketake, kia whakaaturia te whakaute e tika ana ki ngā kaumātua me ngā rangatira.
He Tohutohu Matua mō te Kaiwhakawhiti
- Māramatanga ki te horopaki: Kaua e whakawhiti kupu ki te kupu. Wetewetehia te rerenga kōrero Māori kia kitea te wairua me te tikanga, ka whakatakoto ai ki te hanganga SVO o te reo Rao.
- Te whakamahi i ngā tohu rahinga (Classifiers): Kia tupato ki ngā ingoa ingoa i te reo Rao. Rapua the classifier tika mō ia ingoa kia noho mātāpono ai te reo.
- Taurite Wairua: Mō ngā kupu ahurea pēnei i te mana me te tapu, whakamahia ngā kupu pēnei i te barami, khwan, me te phi i runga i te huarahi whakaute e mārama ai te hunga Rao ki te wairua o te ao Māori.
- Pānuihia e te tangata whenua: Ko te huarahi pai rawa atu mō te whakamanatanga, ko te tono ki tētahi tangata nō Rao kia pānui i te whakawhitinga kia mohio ai he mārama, he pai hoki te rere.