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The Haka
The haka - was once use as a preliminary to a fight between Maori tribes. It was was a challenge to the opposing tribe who may have responded in a similar way. The words are chanted loudly (shouted) in a menacing way accompanied by arm actions and foot stamping.
The All Black rugby team and subsequently other touring sports teams have adopted a haka that was originally used by Te Rauparaha (a particularly notorious warlike chief of the Ngati Toa tribe) and is only one of many hakas which exist throughout New Zealand. Te Rauparaha, originally from Kawhia, raided various parts of NZ in the early 19th Century settling eventually on Kapiti Island near Wellington. There is currently some controversy about the appropriateness of the use of this haka in the South Island where the Maoris suffered particularly under Te Rauparaha.
Here are the words and a translation of Te Rauparaha's haka. The Maori pronunciation is basically one vowel per syllable, with the vowels having the European rather than English sound.
Ka mate, ka mate It is death, it is death Ka ora, ka ora It is life, it is life Ka mate, ka mate It is death, it is death Ka ora, ka ora It is life, it is life Tenei te tangata puhuruhuru This is the hairy man Nana i tiki mai whakawhiti te ra Who caused the sun to shine again for me Upane, upane Up the ladder, up the ladder Upane kaupane Up to the top Whiti te ra The sun shines! As for what it all means, about 140 years ago, Te Rauparaha was being chased by his enemies. He hid in a kumara pit (the local sweet potato) and waited in the dark for his pursuers to find him. He heard sounds above and thought he was done for when the top of the pit was opened up and sunshine flooded in.
He was blinded and struggled to see those about to slay him, when his sight cleared and he instead saw the hairy legs of the local chief (reputed to have been exceptionally hirsute) who had hid him. Te Rauparaha is said to have jumped from the pit and performed this haka on the spot, he was so happy to have escaped. Undoubtedly, he also had in his mind to do a little pursuing of his own - being that way inclined."
