The prominence of Matariki has arisen into a new dawn, revitalising hapū and iwi cultural knowledge and bringing non-Māori into a uniquely Aotearoa cultural experience.
Each hapū and iwi have their own kōrero (stories) to honour the arrival of the Māori New Year that responds to their unique cultural worldview and connection to their whenua.
“I understand that there are tribal variations and differences, and that’s awesome. It’s meant to be different because we’re different. I really support the coming through of traditional regional variations.” - Rangi Mātāmua (Ngai Tūhoe)
Ira first celebrated Matariki in 2020, when returning back from lockdown. For us, it was about honouring a season of renewal and connection. Since then, the Māori new year has become an opportunity to learn more and support the cultural revitalisation process amongst hapū and iwi.
The most commonly known kōrero is from Tūhoe, made popular by Rangi Mātāmua.
Our first campaign was inspired by the book Matariki The Star of the Year, by Rangi Mātāmua. It shares mātauranga (knowledge) about the Tūhoe experience of Matariki.
In this kōrero, Matariki is the eyes of Tāwhirimātea - Ngā mata a te ariki a Tāwhirimātea. Matariki has 8 children with her husband, Rehua. Six stars are associated with the environment and two invite us to consider our future and past.
We credit Rangi Mātāmua and his expert colleagues from other iwi, for leading the institution of Matariki as a national public holiday in 2022. This, among other educational efforts, has seen Matariki respected as an important part of our Aotearoa identity.
Mā muri ka kite a muri, mā muri ka kite a mua.
Those who lead give sight to those who follow, those who follow give life to those who lead. This whakataukī inspires us to consider our future and our past as we move forward. It was the inspiration for our work with Spark to deliver a digital experience. This campaign honoured the importance of Pōhutukawa – reflecting on whānau who guide us from the stars – and Hiwa-i-te-rangi who accepts our aspirations for the new year. It was a privilege to work on a kaupapa that brought Matariki into te ao matihiko (digital world).
Celebrating a uniquely Tainui Waka narrative.
In 2023 we worked with expert knowledge holders in Tainui who shared their unique Matariki story. Their kōrero has unique features, including Matariki as the child of Papatūānuku (Te Raro) and Tama-nui-te-rā such and Atutahi being Matariki’s husband.
Matariki is known as ‘Te Kairuuri’, or the surveyor of the skies as expressed in the whakataukī. “Kua ara ake ahau i te papa o te whenua, kua kite ahau i ngā whetū e tūtaki tahi ana. Ko Matariki te kairuuri, ko Atutahi kei te taumata o Mangōroa.”
We created an interactive tukutuku weaving experience, where people could learn about the kōrero of Matariki from people who descend from Tainui waka. The artwork has the seven stars in the Tainui tradition aligned to seven mountains of the Tainui waka which represents their mana and identity.
“Puanga Kai Rau”
Puanga of the bountiful.
This year we were fortunate to work with Spark and the community of Parihaka to tell more hapū and iwi stories. The campaign followed Parihaka as they celebrated the rising of Puanga, a star to the left of Matariki. They acknowledge Puanga as their view of Taranaki maunga (mountain) obscures the constellation of Matariki visible in other parts of the motu.
We share the kōrero of Haoro Hond, a Māori artist facilitating connection through toi Māori (art), and Dr. Ruakere Hond, who leads the language and cultural revitalisation efforts at Parihaka. It was enriching to see multiple generations fulfilling their unique roles and contributions to their community.
The visit to Parihaka is just the start of a series of future campaigns, all centred around telling unique Māori New Year stories. It will follow the cycles of Matariki throughout the year, and feature each region’s celebratory variations. We developed the name, ‘Tākina te Kōrero’ for the campaign, which relates to the rising of stars and stories.
A special mihi to Grayson Goffe, for promoting whanaungatanga between this kaupapa and his whānau.
These kaupapa honour the special connections hapū and iwi across Aotearoa have to their taiao and their cultural identity and this time of year. We are inspired by the expansion of research and compelling Matariki movements. These efforts inspire and uplift all New Zealanders to connect with our environment and to each other. In future years, our goal is to support the creative expression of these hapū and iwi stories in a way that inspires all of Aotearoa.
