Useful phrases in Rapa Nui

A collection of useful phrases in Rapa Nui (Vananga rapa nui), a Polynesian language spoken mainly on Easter Island

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See these phrases in any combination of two languages in the Phrase Finder. If you can provide recordings, corrections or additional translations, please contact me.

Key to abbreviations: frm = formal, inf = informal, sg = singular (said to one person), pl = plural (said to more than one person).

Phrase Vananga rapa nui (Rapa Nui)
Welcome Koho-mai
Ka oho mai
Hello (General greeting) 'Iorana
Pe hē 'Iorana
Hello (on phone)
How are you? Pe hē a koe?
Pēhē koe?
Pahe koe?
Pēhē kōua ta'atoa?
(How are you all?)
Pahe kōua ta'atoa?
(How are you all?)
Reply to 'How are you?' E riva-riva no 'ā a au
Riva-riva a au. Māuru-uru
Long time no see
What's your name? Ko ai tu'u 'ingoa?
My name is ... Ko ... to'oku 'ingoa
Where are you from? Mai hē a koe?
Ō hē mai koe?
I'm from ... Mai te ... a au
Ō ... mai au
Pleased to meet you
Good morning
(Morning greeting)
'Iorana
Good afternoon
(Afternoon greeting)
'Iorana
Good evening
(Evening greeting)
'Iorana
Good night 'Iorana
Goodbye
(Parting phrases)
'Iorana
Ka oho riva-riva
Good luck! Ka oho riva-riva!
Cheers! Good Health!
(Toasts used when drinking)
Māuru-uru
Have a nice day
Bon appetit /
Have a nice meal
Bon voyage /
Have a good journey
Yes 'Ina
No 'Ē-ē
Maybe
I don't know Kai 'ite 'ana au
I understand Ko angi-angi 'ana au
I don't understand Kai angi-angi 'ana au
Please speak more slowly
Please say that again
Please write it down
Do you speak English?
Do you speak Rapa Nui?
Yes, a little
(reply to 'Do you speak ...?')
Speak to me in Rapa Nui
How do you say ... in Rapa Nui?
Excuse me Ko hape 'ā a au
How much is this? Ehia tara?
Sorry
Please Ana hanga koe
Thank you Māuru-uru
Reply to thank you 'O te aha no
Where's the toilet / bathroom? Ko 'ite 'ana koe i he te hare komo?
This gentleman will pay for everything
This lady will pay for everything
Would you like to dance with me?
Do you come here often?
I miss you
I love you Hanga rahi au kia koe
Get well soon
Go away!
Leave me alone!
Help!
Fire!
Stop!
Call the police!
Christmas greetings
New Year greetings
Easter greetings
Birthday greetings Te aroha mo te ra'a poreko!
One language is never enough
My hovercraft is full of eels

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