Children laugh and learn
Primary school pupils laughed and learned about their local iwi as kauma¯tua wove tales of tipuna (ancestors) and taught tikanga (customs) at amanawatu¯ marae.
Wiremu Kingi Te Awe Awe welcomed Somerset Crescent School pupils, from Palmerston North, on to Rangita¯ne o Manawatu¯ marae with open arms on Monday.
His marae, Te Rangimarie, the heavenly peace, at Rangiotu, was built in 1868 as a tribute to the peacemaking nature of the iwi.
Rangita¯ne’s Hoani Meihana, one of the first Ma¯ori in the region to convert to Christianity, helped bring peace between the warring Rangita¯ne and Nga¯ti Raukawa.
Te Awe Awe, with the help of pupils, re-enacted the discussions Meihana had with Rangita¯ne chief Te Peeti Te Awe Awe and Nga¯ti Raukawa chiefs. Meihana used the
Bible to bring peace before Te Peeti could unleash the firearms he had bought to take down the neighbouring tribe.
It’s part of what sparked the name Te Marae o Hine in the heart of Palmerston North. The acceptance of the name only furthered the peaceful relations Rangita¯ne enjoyed with Nga¯ti Raukawa, as well as cultivating positive relationships with Pa¯keha¯ settling in the region.
Te Peeti told his wha¯nau before his death, ‘‘kua kaupapa i au te aroha, ma koutou ewhakaoti’’, which translated to: ‘‘I have laid the foundation of friendship for you to bring to completion.’’ More than 130 years later his mokopuna (descendants) are keeping to his kaupapa (principles).
Aaretamohi, Te Awe Awe’s mokopuna, spoke to the tamariki (children), teaching them about traditions such as the role of wa¯hine (women) on the marae.
The 18-year-old kura kaupapa student said it was sad many people didn’t havemuch knowledge about Te Marae o Hine, Rangita¯ne orma¯ori history. ‘‘For our kids to come out here, they’re the ones that are going to carry that on tomorrow. It’s really important because if we don’t share it or pass down our knowledge to the next generation then that information is going to be lost.’’
About 2000 tamariki from local schools visit Te Rangimarie each year.
Arihia Te Oka, 10, was excited to learn about Rangita¯ne and its history in Manawatu¯. It was good visiting the marae because some pupils hadn’t been exposed to Ma¯ori culture before, Arihia said.