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Kevin Stokes wishes more people spoke his language. He would also like to see it recognised, as New Zealand's third official language, alng with English and Maori.

'Wellington' and 'All Black' are just two of hundreds of familiar Kiwi terms – such as Milo, Weetbix, pakeha, Maori and marae – described in A Dictionary of New Zealand Sign Language to ve released next week.

We want a place where deaf people, young and old, can meet together. This is the dream of the Auckland Deaf Adult Society, described by the secretary, Jack Pollard. It is a dream which today is beginning to take real shape.

Deaf New Zealanders now have access to te reo Māori vocabulary in the Online Dictionary of NZSL, compiled by Victoria’s Deaf Studies Research Unit.

Kirsten, John and Shannon are over the moon at the recognition of New Zealand Sign Language. "It was the best day for the deaf community; it felt awesome to be a part of the process and support it all the way."

What do you do in the deaf unit at Hutt Valley Memorial College when everything is spic and span ready for a Duchess to pay a visit and someone spills a pot of black ink on the carpet?

Māori concepts like tikanga, iwi and kaumātua don't exist in English-based sign language. And it means deaf Māori have been deprived of their culture, Hamilton-based interpreter Stephanie Awheto said. But that's changing, albeit slowly.

On a recent Saturday, I was lucky enough to meet members of the Auckland Deaf Society at a working bee they were holding to improve the grounds of the city's Deaf Welfare Centre. The centre, incidentially, is a very fine building – it has the biggest sports hall in Auckland with a floor area 110 by 60 feet.

A crowd of 4000 cheered and waved as about 1400 athletes and officials resplendent in national colours marched into the stadium as a reminder that the first World Games for the Deaf were held in Paris in 1924.

Friday marks 30 years since the opening of the country’s first marae for Deaf and hard of hearing Māori. Since 1992, Rūaumoko Marae, in West Auckland’s Kelston, has been a place where Deaf students can learn about te ao Māori.

Deaf people are angered and disappointed by the threat facing the TV show News Review.