Ministry for Culture & Heritage of New Zealand
Ministry for Culture & Heritage of New Zealand
06/10/2022 | News release | Archived content
Te Papa hosts official launch of Matariki, opens exhibition, announces events
News: 10 June 2022
E ko te hautapu, he rite ki te kai nā Matariki! Matariki hunga nui, te mātahi o te tau. Nau mai rā!
Te Papa will host the official launch of Matariki as a public holiday at a pre-dawn ceremony on Friday 24 June.
Matariki becomes a public holiday in Aotearoa New Zealand from this year. It marks the Māori New Year, which is celebrated in the southern hemisphere midwinter, following the rising of the star cluster Matariki (Pleiades).
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will join tohunga (experts) in a pre-dawn hautapu ceremony to celebrate a global first - a public holiday built on mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge).
The museum will also open an interactive Matariki exhibition, Mānawatia a Matariki, on 11 June, and run a series of whānau-friendly events 24 June - 3 July.
Te Papa has held Matariki celebrations for more than 20 years, and Kaihautū | Māori Co-leader Dr Arapata Hakiwai says the creation of a national public holiday to mark Matariki is a dream come true.
"Over the last 20 years, iwi in residence at Te Papa have spoken of their wish for Matariki to become a nationwide celebration for all New Zealanders."
"There will be a lot of people in our thoughts this year, looking down on us and thrilled that we are coming together as a nation to celebrate Matariki," says Dr Hakiwai.
This rising of the Matariki star cluster in the southern skies marks the new year in Aotearoa for many iwi (tribes). It is a time to gather with family and friends to reflect on the past, celebrate the present, and plan for the future.
"While the Matariki star cluster is significant to many cultures, the knowledge and practices developed here over centuries are deeply rooted in te ao Māori and our environment," says Dr Hakiwai.
Te Papa Tumu Whakarae | Chief Executive Courtney Johnston says Te Papa is honoured to host the official launch.
"This is something we want to share with as many people as possible. Coming together for Matariki is part of us gaining a greater understanding of mātauranga Māori and celebrating our unique place in the world."
The hautapu ceremony involves the cooking of kai connected to the stars of Matariki. Steam from the kai is released to feed the stars, and tohunga look to the appearance of the star cluster and make predictions for the year ahead. Twelve tohunga will offer karakia (prayers) at the hautapu ceremony, with Professor Rangi Matamua looking to the stars and sharing his insights.
The ceremony will be broadcast across a range of media channels and live streamed at www.Matariki.net.nz
*This introductory phrase includes a line from a haka which references the hautapu ceremony and Matariki and continues with whakataukī about Matariki being about coming together and celebrating the New Year.
Matariki exhibition 11 June - 21 August
To herald the new public holiday, Te Papa will open a special interactive exhibition about Matariki to encourage everyone to participate in marking our New Year. The key themes of the experience are: remember, celebrate, and hope. The Matariki exhibition opens Saturday 10 June and closes Sunday 21 August. Entry is free.
Matariki events programme 24 June - 3 July
Free, whānau-friendly events include expert speakers, activities for tamariki (children), rongoā (Māori medicine) sessions, performances from the NZSO, and a concert featuring Maisey Rika and Troy Kingi.
Online events include the ever-popular Taikura kapa haka performances by kaumātua (elders) from around the country. Performances will be shared on Te Papa's Facebook throughout the Matariki period.
Te Papa's website offers a wide range of resources including guides for finding Matariki, downloadable activity books for children, and a Matariki quiz.
For more information on the Matariki programme of events and resources, go to: www.tepapa.nz/matariki
How to celebrate Matariki at home
Enjoy a midwinter feast with friends and whānau.
Light a candle to remember the dead of the year and to honour their memory.
Write down your hopes, dreams, and aspirations for the year ahead.
Go outside! Look up at the stars - can you see Matariki?
Play games and tell stories. Matariki is about having fun with your loved ones.
Come together with your community for a Matariki ritual that uses the ideas above.
Ka tū te whakarewanga ake o te hararei ā-motu tuatahi o Matariki ki Te Papa i te atapō o te Rāmere te 24 o Pipiri.
Ko te tau tuatahi tēnei ka tū tētahi rā okioki mā te motu whānui ki te whakanui i a Matariki ki Aotearoa. Ko te Tau Hou Māori tēnei, e tū ana i te paunga o ngā rā o Hine-takurua, nō muri atu i te rewanga ake o te kāhui whetū o Matariki.
Ka huihui te Pirimia, a Jacinda Ardern rātou ko ngā tohunga i mua i te huakanga o Tamanuiterā ki te tāpae i te hautapu. Otirā, he tuatahitanga tēnei ki te ao whānui, arā, ko te hararei ā-motu tuatahi i takea mai i te ao Māori.
Ka whakatuwhera hoki te whare taonga nei i tētahi whakaaturanga pāhekoheko i te 11 o Pipiri, ā, ka whakahaerehia ngā kaupapa ā-whānau mai i te 24 o Pipiri ki te 3 o Hōngongoi.
Neke atu i te 20 tau a Te Papa e whakanui ana i a Matariki, ā, hei tā te Kaihautū, hei tā Tākuta Arapata Hakiwai, ko te whakatutukinga tēnei o tētahi wawata nui, arā, ko te whakatūnga o tētahi rā okioki ā-motu e whakanui ana i a Matariki.
"I te roanga o ēnei tau e 20, kua whakapuaki ngā iwi i tō rātou hiahia kia whakanuia a Matariki e te motu whānui o Aotearoa."
"He nui te hunga kei te pae o ō tātou mahara i tēnei tau e titiro whakararo mai ana ki a tātou i runga i te ngākau harikoa i te mea, kei te huihui te motu whānui ki te whakamānawa i a Matariki," te kī a Tākuta Hakiwai.
Ko te whakarewanga ake o te kāhui whetū o Matariki tēnei, arā, ko te mātahi o te tau ki te huhua o ngā iwi Māori o Aotearoa. Ka huihui te tangata, ka maharatia te onamata, ka mānawatia te inamata, ka manakotia te anamata.
"Ahakoa e whakanuia ana te kāhui whetū o Matariki e te ngā iwi maha huri noa i te ao, kua takea mai te mātauranga me ngā tikanga tuku iho o tēnei kaupapa i te ao Māori me tō tātou taiao tonu," te kī a Tākuta Hakiwai.
Hei tā te Tumu Whakarae o Te Papa, hei tā Courtney Johnston, nō Te Papa anō te hōnore ki te whakatū i te whakarewanga ake o te kaupapa ki reira.
"Kei te hiahia mātou kia kitea whānuitia tēnei kaupapa e te tokomaha. Ka huihui tātou i raro i te kaupapa o Matariki, kei te whakapiki ake tātou i tō tātou mōhiotanga ki te ao Māori, ā, kei te whakanuia hoki tō tātou tūnga motuhake i te ao.
Ko te hautapu, he umu kai hei whāngai i ngā whetū o Matariki. Ka hukea te hautapu, ka rewa take e kohukohu i ngā kai o te umu, ka whāngaia ngā whetū. Ka kite ngā tohunga i te putanga ake o te kāhui whetū, ka whakapuakina ngā kōrero mō te tau hou. Tekau mā rua ngā tohunga e takitaki ana i ngā karakia, ā, ka whakapuaki a Ahorangi Rangi Matamua i ngā kōrero.
Ka whakapāhotia te hautapu ki ngā momo ara pāpāho, ā, ka whakapāhotia hoki ngā whakaritenga i taua wā tonu ki www.Matariki.net.nz
Mānawatia a Matariki 11 o Pipiri - 21 o Hereturikōkā
Hei whakanui i tēnei rā okioki ā-motu hou, ka tū tētahi whakaaturanga pāhekoheko mō Matariki ki Te Papa ki te whakatītina i te kaupapa o te Tau Hou Māori ki te ngākau o ngā tāngata katoa. Ko ngā kaupapa nui ko: maharatia, mānawatia, manakotia. Ka tuwhera te whakaaturanga o Matariki ā te Rāhoroi te 10 o Pipiri, ka kati ā te Rātapu te 21 o Hereturikōkā. Kāore he utu.
Ngā kaupapa o Matariki 24 o Pipiri - 3 o Hōngongoi
Ko ngā kaupapa utu-kore mā te whānau ēnei: ko ngā pū kōrero, ko ngā mahi mā ngā tamariki, ko ngā kaupapa rongoā, ko ngā whakaari nā te NZSO, ā, ka tū hoki a Maisey Rika rāua ko Troy Kingi ki te waiata.
Mō ētahi atu pārongo e pā ana ki ngā kaupapa me ngā rauemi mō Matariki haere ki: www.tepapa.nz/matariki
Ngā mahi hei whakanui i a Matariki i te kāinga
Whakatūria tētahi hākari i te taha o ngā hoa me te whānau.
Whakakāngia tētahi kānara hei tohu mahara ki ngā mate o te tau
Tuhia ō tūmanako, ō wawata me ō whāinga nui mō te tau e heke mai ana
E puta ki waho! Titiro ake ki ngā whetū - kei te kite koe i a Matariki?
Tākarohia ngā kēmu, whakapuakina ngā kōrerorero. He kaupapa ngahau a Matariki hei whakanui i te taha o ō tino tāngata.
Whakakotahihia tō hapori, ā, whakatūria tētahi tikanga e whai ana i ngā whakaaro o runga ake nei.