1. About Tahitian
Tahitian (Reo Tahiti, also Reo Māʻohi) is an Eastern Polynesian language of the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is the main Indigenous language of the territory and a lingua franca for much of its population, with roughly 68,000 fluent speakers, most of them bilingual in French. Its guardian institution is the Académie Tahitienne (Fare Vānaʻa), which standardises the spelling and vocabulary used here.1
Tahitian has a small, clear sound system — five vowels and a handful of consonants — and a simple, analytic grammar with little inflection, which makes the basics approachable. The two features to internalise early are the glottal stop (written ʻ, the ʻeta) and vowel length (marked with a macron), because both change meaning; and the verb-first word order.12
A note on respect and sources: Tahitian is a living Indigenous language under pressure from French. This guide follows Académie Tahitienne spellings, marks uncertain points, and should be reviewed by Tahitian speakers / the Académie before publication.
Key features to know from day one
- The verb comes first. Tahitian is verb–subject–object, so the action leads the sentence.2
- The glottal stop is a real letter. Written ʻ (the ʻeta), it separates vowels and distinguishes words; leaving it out can change the meaning.1
- Vowel length matters. A macron (ā, ē, ī, ō, ū) marks a long vowel, and length can change a word's meaning.1
- Time is shown by small markers before the verb, not by endings: ʻua (completed), tē … nei (happening now), e (future).2
- Articles are short words before the noun: te ('the'), te mau (plural 'the').2
- Pronouns distinguish singular, dual and plural, and an inclusive vs exclusive 'we' — a Polynesian feature worth noticing early.
2. Pronunciation & the alphabet
The alphabet is small: five vowels (a, e, i, o, u) plus the consonants f, h, m, n, p, r, t, v and the glottal stop ʻeta. Vowels are pure; a macron doubles a vowel's length.1
| Letter / mark | Sound | Example |
|---|---|---|
| a e i o u | pure vowels, as in Spanish/Italian | mata (eye) |
| ā ē ī ō ū | the same vowels held long (macron = tārava) | pāʻē vs paʻe |
| ʻ (ʻeta) | glottal stop — a catch in the throat, as in 'uh-oh' | ʻIa ora na (hello) |
| r | a light tap/roll | māuruuru (thank you) |
| f, h, m, n, p, t, v | as in English | fare (house) |
Because the ʻeta and the macron carry meaning, treat them as part of spelling, not decoration. (In this guide's exercises, answers typed without them are still accepted, but learning them is the goal.)
3. Greetings & essential words
These greetings and the numbers below follow Académie Tahitienne usage.3
| Tahitian | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ʻIa ora na | Hello / greetings (to one or many) |
| Māuruuru | Thank you |
| Māuruuru roa | Thank you very much |
| ʻE | Yes |
| ʻAita | No |
| Nana | Bye / see you |
| Pārahi | Goodbye |
| E aha te huru? | How are you? (lit. 'what is the state?') |
| Maitaʻi | Good / well |
| ʻē, māuruuru | Yes, thank you |
Numbers 1–10
| Value | Tahitian | Value | Tahitian |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | hōʻē | 6 | ono |
| 2 | piti | 7 | hitu |
| 3 | toru | 8 | vaʻu |
| 4 | maha | 9 | iva |
| 5 | pae | 10 | ʻahuru |
Practice: greetings & numbers
Practice: Core Tahitian greetings and the first five numbers. The proper spelling uses the ʻeta (ʻ) and macrons, but answers without them are also accepted while you learn.. Type the missing word — accents are optional.
- 1.Hello / greetings:
Hint: the all-purpose Polynesian greeting, said to one person or many
- 2.Thank you:
Hint: the word for giving thanks
- 3.Yes:
Hint: the short affirmative (with a glottal onset)
- 4.No:
Hint: the basic negative
- 5.Bye / see you:
Hint: a casual parting word
- 6.the number 'one':
Hint: the first number
- 7.the number 'two':
Hint: the number after hōʻē
- 8.the number 'three':
Hint: the number after piti
- 9.the number 'four':
Hint: the number after toru
- 10.the number 'five':
Hint: the number of fingers on one hand
10 questions
Grammar reference: Greetings and numerals per Académie Tahitienne usage, cross-checked against Omniglot; cf. Tryon, Conversational Tahitian (Univ. of California Press, 1970). All prompts original to LinguaCommons. CEFR A1. Confidence: greetings High; number spellings Medium (orthographic variation). Requires community/Académie review.. Sentences are original to LinguaCommons.
4. Articles, tense markers & pronouns
Articles
The basic article is te ('the'): te fare ('the house'), te taʻata ('the person'). For a plural, Tahitian uses te mau: te mau fare ('the houses').2
Showing time with markers
Tahitian verbs do not conjugate; instead a small marker before the verb shows time. ʻUa marks a completed action (ʻUa tae au, 'I have arrived'); the frame tē … nei marks an action happening now (Tē haere nei au, 'I am going'); and e marks the future or general action (E haere au, 'I will go').2
Pronouns
The singular pronouns are au / vau ('I'), ʻoe ('you'), and ʻōna / ʻoia ('he/she'). Tahitian also has dual and plural forms and separates inclusive 'we' (tāua, you-and-I) from exclusive 'we' (māua, others-and-I).2
Practice: articles, tense markers & pronouns
Practice: Use the article te ('the'), the pre-verbal tense markers (ʻua completed, e future), the core pronouns (au 'I', ʻoe 'you'), and the numbers 6–10. The ʻeta/macron are part of correct spelling but answers without them are accepted.. Type the missing word — accents are optional.
- 1.the article 'the': fare (the house) → ___
Hint: the basic singular article before a noun
- 2.pronoun 'I': → ___
Hint: the first-person singular pronoun
- 3.pronoun 'you' (singular): → ___
Hint: the second-person singular pronoun
- 4.completed-action marker: tae au (I have arrived) → ___
Hint: the marker before the verb for a finished action
- 5.future marker: haere au (I will go) → ___
Hint: the marker before the verb for future/general actions
- 6.the number 'six':
Hint: comes after pae (5)
- 7.the number 'seven':
Hint: comes after ono (6)
- 8.the number 'eight':
Hint: comes after hitu (7)
- 9.the number 'nine':
Hint: comes after vaʻu (8)
- 10.the number 'ten':
Hint: the round number after iva (9)
10 questions
Grammar reference: Articles, tense–aspect markers and pronouns per Tryon, Conversational Tahitian (Univ. of California Press, 1970) and the Académie Tahitienne. All sentences original to LinguaCommons. CEFR A2. Confidence: High for grammar; Medium for exact number spellings. Requires community/Académie review.. Sentences are original to LinguaCommons.
5. Beyond the basics
🚧 In development. This section will cover the full tense–aspect system (including tē … nei, i for past, ʻia), the dual/plural and inclusive/exclusive pronouns in full, and question formation. Content here is being expanded in a later run and is not yet complete.
🚧 In development. The a/o possessive classes and high-frequency vocabulary, drawn from Académie Tahitienne resources, will be added here.
🚧 In development. This section will treat register, the relationship between Tahitian and French in daily life, and differences among the Society Islands varieties. Not yet complete.
🚧 In development. Planned (with community guidance): oratory, proverbs, and the cultural concepts behind everyday speech. Not yet complete.
🚧 In development. Planned: near-native listening and a media plan (Tahitian-language radio, song, and news). Not yet complete.
- Académie Tahitienne — Fare Vānaʻa — the official Tahitian language authority
- Tahitian language — overview — phonology, orthography and grammar
- Tahitian alphabet (Omniglot) — the ʻeta and macron