Mana Andhra Telugu Association
Together we can make a difference
Established in 2020, Mana Andhra Telugu Association Incorporated; is commonly known as MATA in New Zealand. It is a non-profit organization that promotes the vibrant and diversified multi culture in New Zealand.
MATA has a two-fold vision:
- To enrich New Zealand Telugu speaking resident's and visitor's life with significant contributions from multiculturalism and arts.
- To encourage local involvement and interactions within multicultural events, and promote New Zealand as a rich international multicultural destination for culture and art, performances and entertainments.
MATA promotes the best achievements of Indian Telugu culture in New Zealand to contribute to greater diversity of New Zealand culture. The Telugu people or Telugu vaaru, also rendered as Telugus, are a Dravidian ethnic group who speak Telugu as their native language and or trace their ancestry to the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
Telugu is a South-Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. It is the official language for both these states. Telugu is the third most spoken language after Hindi and Bengali in India. Andhra Pradesh and Telangana are the principal resident states for Telugu people. The Telugu people form the majority speakers in South India with over 75 millions speakers in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana alone. There are approximately 2000 Telugu speaking people in New Zealand.