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Ngātai's Holiday Vlog Video

Ngātai's Holiday Vlog

Kā Tiritiri o te Moana

Video Transcript
Kia ora tātou.

Recently, i went to my marae – te Tauraka-Waka-a-Māui.
Yes, you heard right – Māui – superhero of the Pacific.

Te Tauraka-Waka-a-Māui is in maitahi, in Poutini ki te Toka – South Westland.
It’s the first place Māui landed when he arrived in Aotearoa.

This is Māui.
These carvings and tukutuku tell stories from our rohe.
This is the story of how the Southern Alps got their name.

Long, long, ago Māui and his crew set sail from Hawaiki.
They sailed across te Moananui-a-Kiwa.
Eventually the waters got cooler and the days longer.

One day as the sun was going down one of māui’s crew shouted out
“He whenua! He whenua!”
Everyone looked. Māui shook his head
“Kā tiritiri o te moana kē …”

As they got closer the huge, snow capped mountains stretched out in front of them …
Maui realised his mistake …

And from that day to this they have been known as Kā Tiritiri o te Moana.


This is a Kāi Tahu kōrero from Poutini ki te Toka.
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