Matariki

Matariki Play Matariki Māori New Year and the Pleiades star cluster Māori | Personal noun is an open cluster of many stars, also known as the Pleiades. They feature in many cultures’ legends and folk tales. In te reo Māori, ‘Matariki’ can be broken down as ‘mata riki’ — ‘tiny eyes’, or as ‘mata ariki’ — ‘eyes of the gods’.

There has been some debate over the number of stars that can be seen by the naked eye in the Matariki cluster. Te Papa Tongarewa, The National Museum of New Zealand, says there are in fact 500 different stars in the cluster, but we can only see 6 or 7 without a telescope.

Te Aka Māori Dictionary suggests 9 stars are visible: ‘The brightest star in the centre of the cluster, also known as Matariki (Alcyone), married Rehua (Antares) and is the mother of the other eight stars of the Pleiades known to Māori.’

Their children are the stars known as:

• Waitī Play Waitī Maia - one of the stars in Te Kāhui o Matariki, the Pleiades star cluster. A star connected to fresh water and the creatures that live in rivers, streams and lakes. Māori | Noun
• Waitā Play Waitā Taygeta - one of the stars in Te Kāhui o Matariki, the Pleiades star cluster. A star associated with food harvested from the sea Māori | Personal noun
• Waipunarangi Play Waipunarangi Electra - one of the stars in Te Kāhui o Matariki, the Pleiades star cluster. Sometimes as Waipuna-a-rangi. A star associated with rain Māori | Personal noun
• Tupuānuku Play Tupuānuku Pleione - one of the stars in Te Kāhui o Matariki, the Pleiades star cluster. A star associated with food that is grown in the ground, for example, kūmara. Māori | Personal noun
• Tupuārangi Play Tupuārangi Atlas - one of the stars in Te Kāhui o Matariki, the Pleiades star cluster. A star associated with food that comes from the sky, such as birds, or elevated fruit and berries from trees Māori | Personal noun
• Ururangi Play Ururangi Merope - one of the stars in Te Kāhui o Matariki, the Pleiades star cluster. A star that determines the nature of the winds for the year Māori | Personal noun
• Pōhutukawa Play Pōhutukawa Sterope - one of the stars in Te Kāhui o Matariki, the Pleiades star cluster. A female star that connects Matariki to the dead. Māori | Noun
• Hiwa-i-te-rangi Play Hiwa-i-te-rangi Calaeno - one of the stars in Te Kāhui o Matariki, the Pleiades star cluster. Sometimes shortened to just Hiwa. A star that Māori would send their dreams and desires to in the hope that they would be realised. Said by some to be the daughter of Matariki and was taken by the star Ioio-whenua as his wife Māori | Personal noun

The appearance of Matariki in the sky just before dawn in the last days of May or in early June was cause for celebration. It was a sign that people could start or complete various tasks in the food harvesting cycle. Traditionally people thought the crops of the coming season were influenced by how visible and bright the stars of Matariki were. If they were really bright, people could expect warmer weather, bringing a more productive crop.

Matariki is the traditional Māori New Year. In the 1940s celebrations died out. They were only reignited again in 2000. Since then, Matariki celebrations have become popular around New Zealand, acknowledging the unique place in which we live and the land we live on.

Puanga Play Puanga Rigel - the seventh brightest star in the sky and seen above Tautoru (Orion's Belt) in the eastern sky in early morning. With some iwi Puanga heralded the beginning of the Māori year Māori | Personal name  is the brightest star in the constellation Orion. In some parts of Aotearoa, Matariki is not as visible, which is why some iwi celebrate Puanga before Matariki. The celebration of Puanga goes for a much longer period than Matariki. It includes a 2-month preparatory period followed by another 2 months of wānanga Play wānanga To meet and discuss Māori | Verb .

A commonly known whakataukī Play whakataukī Proverb Māori | Noun (proverb) that acknowledges Puanga is:

This whakataukī recognises the hard work that has been done growing kai over months and months to ensure there is enough to feed the iwi during the less productive months of takurua (winter).

Both Puanga and Matariki are times to pause for reflection, to learn from the past and to plan for the future. They are seen as a period of hope symbolising review, renewal and revival. They are a time when we remember and celebrate loved ones and share stories.

Stories, whether traditional or personal, are a perfect way for young children to learn about the past. Stories might be about the whenua Play whenua Land, or placenta Māori | Noun , the moana Play moana Sea, ocean, large lake Māori | Noun or ngā whetū (stars), and how tīpuna Play tīpuna Ancestors, grandparents Māori | Noun (ancestors) used the stars for navigation, for planting and harvesting.

Stories can help mokopuna learn about their tīpuna, both living and dead. A story might simply be about a certain kuia and her talents and skills, perhaps sharing a special recipe she always made for whānau celebrations.

Matariki is a great way to help whānau to slow down in what can sometimes be very busy and hectic lives. It gives us a marker when we can remember, learn and make new plans and goals for our tamariki and whānau.

With its focus on reflection and review, Matariki can be a good time to think about clearing any past raruraru (conflicts/disputes). This may be a time to forgive and forget, to patch things up and start the new year with a fresh and optimistic outlook.