Ngāti Toa
Ngāti Toa | |
---|---|
Māoridom | |
Rohe (region) | Lower North Island Upper South Island |
Waka (canoe) | Tainui |
Population | 4779 (c. 2013) |
Website | www |
Ngāti Toa, Ngāti Toarangatira or Ngāti Toa Rangatira, is a
The iwi traces its descent from the eponymous ancestor Toarangatira. Prior to the 1820s, Ngāti Toa lived on the coastal west Waikato region until forced out by conflict with other Tainui iwi headed by Pōtatau Te Wherowhero (c. 1785 - 1860), who later became the first Māori King (r. 1858–1860). Ngāti Toa, Ngāti Rārua and Ngāti Koata, led by Te Rauparaha (c. 1765-1849), escaped south and invaded Taranaki and the Wellington regions together with three North Taranaki iwi, Te Āti Awa, Ngāti Tama and Ngāti Mutunga. Together they fought with and conquered the turangawaewae[3] of Wellington,
Traditional sayings
A saying delineates the tribe's traditional boundaries:
Mai i Miria-te-kakara ki Whitireia,
Whakawhiti te moana Raukawa ki Wairau, ki Whakatū,
Te Waka Tainui.[5]
However the tribe mainly lives around Porirua and Nelson. An aphorism links tribal identity with ancestors and landmarks:
Ko Whitireia te maunga
Ko Raukawa te moana
Ko Tainui te waka
Ko Ngāti Toarangatira te iwi
Ko Te Rauparaha te tangata
Whitireia is the mountain
Raukawa (Cook Strait) is the sea
Tainui is the waka
Ngāti Toarangatira is the tribe
Te Rauparaha is the man[5]
History
Origins of the iwi
Tū-pāhau, a descendant of Hoturoa, the captain of the Tainui canoe,[6] received warning of an imminent attack by Tamure, a priest of Tainui, and at once organised a plan of defence and attack. Tamure had an army of 2000 warriors whereas Tupahau had only 300. Tū-pāhau and his followers won the battle, however Tū-pāhau spared Tamure's life. Tamure responded to this by saying, Tēnā koe Tupahau, te toa rangatira! meaning "Hail Tū-pāhau the chivalrous warrior!" (toa meaning "brave man" or "champion" and rangatira meaning "gallant", "grand", "admirable" or "chiefly").
Later, Tū-pāhau's daughter-in-law bore a son who received the name "Toa-rangatira" to commemorate both this event and the subsequent peace made between Tamure and Tū-pāhau. Ngāti Toa trace their descent from Toa-rangatira.
Te Rauparaha
Parekowhatu of Ngāti Raukawa, the wife of Werawera of Ngāti Toa, gave birth to Te Rauparaha in about the 1760s. According to tribal tradition the birth took place at Pātangata near Kāwhia. Te Rauparaha became the foremost chief of Ngāti Toa, credited with leading Ngāti Toa forces against the Waikato and Ngāti Maniapoto iwi and then, after his defeat, with piloting the migration to, and the conquest and settlement of, the Cook Strait region in the 1820s. Later he crossed Cook Strait to attack the Rangitane people in the Wairau valley. His attempt to conquer the southern South Island iwi was thwarted by an outbreak of measles which killed many of his warriors.
Te Rauparaha signed the
Following fighting in the Hutt Valley in 1846, Governor
Te Rauparaha died on 27 November 1849, aged about 85, and was buried near Rangiātea, in Ōtaki. Many remember him as the author of the haka "Ka mate, ka mate", which he composed after being hidden in a rua (potato pit) by a woman in the Taupō region after a defeat in battle.[8]
Invasion from the north
Ngāti Toa lived around the Kāwhia region for many generations until increasing conflicts with neighbouring Waikato–Maniapoto iwi forced a withdrawal from their homeland. From the late eighteenth century Ngāti Toa and related tribes constantly warred with the Waikato–Maniapoto tribes for control of the rich fertile land north of Kāwhia. The wars intensified with every killing of a major chief and with each insult and slight suffered, peaking with the huge battle of Hingakaka in the late 18th or early 19th century. Ngāti Toa migrated from Kāwhia to the Cook Strait region under the leadership of their chief Te Rauparaha in the 1820s.
Together, the two migrations Heke Tahutahuahi and Heke Tātaramoa have the name Heke mai raro, meaning "migration from the north". The carved meeting-house bearing the name Te Heke Mai Raro, which stands on Hongoeka Marae, immortalises the migration.[8]
First migration, Heke Tahutahuahi, 1820
Heke Tahutahuahi (translatable as the "fire lighting expedition")
Second migration, Heke Tātaramoa, 1822–
The name Heke Tātaramoa (translatable as the "bramble bush migration") commemorates the difficulties experienced during Ngāti Toa's second migration. Ngāti Toa left Ōkokī around February–March 1822 after harvesting crops planted for the journey. This heke also included some people from Ngāti Tama, Ngāti Mutunga and Te Āti Awa. The heke arrived in the
"Ka Mate" haka
Concern over inappropriate commercial use of Te Rauparaha's Ka Mate led the iwi to attempt to trademark it,[10][11] but in 2006 the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand turned their claim down on the grounds that Ka Mate had achieved wide recognition in New Zealand and abroad as representing New Zealand as a whole and not a particular trader.[12]
In 2009, as a part of a wider settlement of grievances, the
- ...record the authorship and significance of the haka Ka Mate to Ngāti Toa and ... work with Ngāti Toa to address their concerns with the haka... [but] does not expect that redress will result in royalties for the use of Ka Mate or provide Ngāti Toa with a veto on the performance of Ka Mate....[13][14]
In November 2021, tribal elders told anti-Covid-vaccine protesters in New Zealand to stop using the Ka Mate haka at their rallies.[15]
Marae and wharenui
There are four marae (communal places) and wharenui (meeting houses) affiliated with Ngāti Toa:
- Hongoeka Marae (including Te Heke Mai Raro wharenui), Plimmerton
- Takapuwahia Marae (including Toa Rangatira wharenui), Porirua
- Wairau Marae (including Wairau wharenui), Spring Creek
- Whakatū Marae (including Kākāti wharenui), Nelson[1]
Governance
Te Runanga o Toa Rangatira Inc is recognised by the
Te Runanga o Toa Rangatira is an incorporated society, governed by a board of 15 representatives, including three elected from iwi whānui, some appointed from Hamilton, Nelson and Wairau, and some appointed from marae and other Ngāti Toa organisations. As of 2016, the iwi chairperson is Taku Parai, the executive director is Matiu Rei, and the society is based in Porirua.[1]
Ngāti Toa have interests in the territories of
References
- ^ a b c d "Rohe". tkm.govt.nz. Te Puni Kōkiri, New Zealand Government. Retrieved 2 March 2016.
- ^ "Ngāti Toa Rangatira Area of Interest from the Deed of Settlement" (JPG 177KB). tkm.govt.nz. Te Puni Kōkiri. 7 December 2012. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
- ^ turangawaewae
- ^
ISBN 9781459623750. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
Ngati Toa and Ngati Raukawa were pushed out of Waikato and made their way down the west coast of the North Island, fighting and defeating other tribes such as Ngati Apa, Muaupoko and Rangitane as they did so. Various Taranaki tribes joined them in actions against peoples in the far south of the North island, such as Ngati Ira, who virtually disappeared at this time.
- ^ a b c [NZETC: HISTORY AND TRADITIONS OF THE MAORIS OF THE WEST COAST, NORTH ISLAND OF NEW ZEALAND, PRIOR TO 1840 – Ngati-Ira of Port Nicholson. p408-410]
- ^ Pōmare, Mīria (4 March 2009). "Ngāti Toarangatira – Identity". Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
- ^ Broad, Lowther. "Chapter V. The Jubilee History of Nelson: From 1842 to 1892". New Zealand Electronic Text Centre. Retrieved 21 December 2011. (p. 50)
- ^ a b c d Royal, Te Ahukaramū Charles, Kāti au i konei: He Kohikohinga i ngā Waiata a Ngāti Toarangatira, a Ngāti Raukawa. Wellington: Huia Publishers, 1994.
- ^ Pōmare, Mīria (6 April 2010). "Ngāti Toarangatira – Migration from the north". Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
- ^ "All Blacks fight to keep haka". BBC News. 16 July 2000. Retrieved 3 May 2008.
- ^ "Iwi threatens to place trademark on All Black haka". The New Zealand Herald. 22 May 2005. Retrieved 3 May 2008.
- ^ "Iwi claim to All Black haka turned down". The New Zealand Herald. 2 July 2007. Retrieved 3 May 2008.
- ^ Ngāti Toa Rangatira Letter of Agreement Archived 21 May 2010 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ BBC.co.uk
- ^
McClure, Tess (15 November 2021). "Māori tribe tells anti-Covid vaccine protesters to stop using its haka". The Guardian. London, United Kingdom. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
- Radio New Zealand News. 8 April 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
- ISSN 0111-5871.
- Dominion Post. p. 31.
- ^ "Iwi Radio Coverage" (PDF). maorimedia.co.nz. Māori Media Network. 2007. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
- ^ "Wellington". Welcome to the Radio Vault. New Zealand: The Radio Vault. 23 July 2009. Archived from the original on 24 January 2010. Retrieved 12 June 2015.
External links
- Ngāti Toa
- Hongoeka Marae
- Te Rauparaha Archived 1 December 2005 at the Wayback Machine
- Ngāti Toarangatira in Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand
- Haka 'Ka Mate' Performed by Ngāti Toa – video on the Te Papa Channel