First Lessons in Maori

§ 72. Who, Which

§ 72. Who, Which.

—When the relative pronoun in English is the subject of the relative clause:

i. The predicate of the relative clause may be placed immediately after the antecedent without any expressed subject, and may be followed by one of the adverbs, ( a) nei, ( b) na, or ( c) ra; according as the thing spoken of is near, or connected with, ( a) the speaker, ( b) the person spoken to, or ( c) neither; but if one of these adverbs is used, and the verb is imperfect, ana must be omitted.

Examples.
  • Te tangata e hanga whare ana, the man who is housebuilding.

  • Te waka i kitea e taua, the canoe which was seen by you and me.

  • Te tamaiti i korero mai ra ki a taua, the boy who spoke to us.

  • Te rakau e tu ra i runga i te puke, the tree which stands on the hill.

ii. If the relative clause is past or future, the construction mentioned in § 55 may be used; the pronoun of the third person singular serving for all persons and numbers.

Examples.
  • Te tangata nana nei i patu toku matua, the man who killed my father.

  • Ko nga tangata enei nana i tahu te ngahere, these are the men who set on fire the forest.

  • Ko te tohunga koe mana e hanga te whare, you are the skilled man who shall build the house.

iii. If the relative pronoun has a common noun joined to it, the definitive taua (pl. aua) is used to represent it.

Examples.
  • E tu tonu nei taua whare, which house is still standing.

  • I noho ra ratou ki aua wahi, which places they occupied.