The Kiingitanga edition

Kia ora e te whānau,

Nau mai, hoki mai ki Te Arawhata—the Kiingitanga edition.

The outpouring of grief at the tangi for Kiingi Tuheitia Pootatau Te Wherowhero VII…

The infectious hope surrounding the coronation of Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po Pootatau Te Wherowhero VIII…

The shows of aroha from people of all backgrounds across Aotearoa and the globe…

—If the past couple of weeks have shown us anything, it’s that the Kiingitanga is a massively relevant part of our future.

Firstly to show our respect and secondly because we think it’s fun, today’s pānui is full of content from Māori creatives (including historic rundowns, sacred ritual explanations, and Tuurangawaewae invites) to help us learn more about it.

First up, as always, we recommend he kapu tī/a cuppa tea for talk of the tāone.

‍

‍

Talk of the tāone

Your weekly round up of the arts, media, and events everybody’s talking about

‍

- ‘HĀ TUA’ (probs the most beautiful digital magazine on arts and culture ever) has just dropped.

- Famous kapa haka group Angitu was shown up at the poroporoaki for Kiingi Tuheitia.

- The Tuurangawaewae engine room has been feeding thousands and inspiring more.

- 43 out of 45 councils voted to keep their Māori ward and this councillor had something to say about it.

- Māori artist, Shannon Te Ao, is wowing crowds in South Korea with their installation ‘Ia rā, ia rā (rere runga, rere raro)’.

- Rangipare Belshaw-Ngaropo is giving readers a taste of her upcoming poetry book with this timely beauty.
‍

Picks o te wiki

Our top 4 Kiingitanga inspired recommendations from the world of Māori arts, media, and events.

‍

Watch: ‘Kiingitanga - Behind the throne’, a doco series

This series ‘throws open the kēti/gates’ to share the history, hidden treasures, and secret rituals behind the Kiingitanga movement. Our fav parts are the uiuinga/interviews and home scenes with Kiingi Tuheitia, in which he (freely and easily) shares his experience of royal life—including the exact and very relatable whakaaro/thoughts running through his hinengaro/mind during his coronation…

_{Find it: on Māori+ I Time: 3 parts, 50mins each I Cost: free I Credits: written by Bradford Haami, directed and produced by Mahanga Pihama, also produced by Viv Wigby-Ngatai}

Read: ‘How will the next Māori monarch be chosen?’, a Spinoff article

OK, our Kuiini has been locked in, but kei te mōhio koe/do you know how and why? It was all down to the ‘Tekau-mā-rua’ (of whom I knew nothing about until reading this article). Turns out, the inner processes of the Kiingitanga system, which once seemed very porehu/mysterious and (not gonna lie) gatekept to me, are actually quite transparent and open. Well there we go!

_{Find it: on the Spinoff I Time: 5mins I Cost: free I Credits: written by Liam Rātana}

Listen to: Mihingarangi Forbes talk about the crowning of Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po on Morning Report

All of Aotearoa is hungry for information about the new Māori Kuiini, Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po—ko mātou hoki/us included! In this short and sharp uiuinga/interview, Mihingarangi Forbes fills us in on what she knows in trademark respectful and informative style leaving appropriate room for the new monarch to make the first statements herself. Respect.

_{Find it: on the RNZ website I Time: 6mins I Cost: free I Credits: interview is from RNZ’s Morning Report}

Go to: Tuurangawaewae Annual Regatta

Perhaps one of the best opportunities for most of us to experience the wairua of Tuurangawaewae in person is at this annual regatta. OK… it’s generally at the end of Māehe/March, but early schedulers get the noke/worm, nē? Promising waka ama, kai, kapa haka, glimpses of ngā Ariki, and probably catch ups with cuzzies from down the line, we can’t wait.

_{Find it: on facebook l Time: still to be announced but most likely end of March 2025 I Cost: free I Credits: hosted by the Ngāruawāhia community}

*To hear about Māori events in YOUR region, follow our dedicated ‘Haere’ page: Northland, Auckland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty,Taranaki, Gisborne/Hawke’s Bay, Manawatū/Whanganui,Wellington, Nelson/Tasman/Marlborough, Canterbury/West Coast, Otago, Southland.

‍

Throwback Tūrei/Tuesday…

‍

Who remembers the Royal Whakapapa Roady Challenge from our Waikato edition in early August?

Because youuuuuu guessed it, we’re bringing it back e hoa mā!

The very least we can do to pay our respects to our Māori Kiingi and Kuiini is to ensure we know their ingoa/names, nē?

‍

No reira, here’s the challenge:

1. Make a list of all the Māori Monarchs you know (expert level - include the dates of their reign).

2. Compare that list against the one we publish below (informed by this Taringa podcast).

3. Record your score.

4. Follow us on instagram and try again in our ‘Friyay Pop Quiz’. Whether you get 0/8 or 8/8 today, the goal is to improve by one person or  detail by then e te whānau.

‍

Ka taea e tātou! We can do it!

‍

Righto, go on and make your list. This can be in your head, your computer, or a piece of paper.

Answers coming up in:

‍

10

9

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

…

‍

OK, ānei ngā whakautu!/here are the answers!

‍

1. Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po Pootatau Te Wherowhero VIII (youngest child of Kiingi Tuheitia, and second wahine to hold this position), from Sept 5 2024

‍

2. Kiingi Tuheitia Pootatau Te Wherowhero VII (son of Te Atairangikaahu, known for his enthusiasm to support kotahitanga, rangatahi, and being future focussed) 2006 till 2024.

‍

3. Te Arikinui Te Atairangikaahu, (2nd eldest daughter of Koroki, our longest reigning monarch, a huge advocate for sports and kapa haka with a demeanour that could defuse just about anything) 1966-2006.

‍

4. Kiingi Koroki Tawhiao Potatau Te Wherowhero (son of Te Rata and a reluctant king who was more comfortable under the hood of a truck than the paepae), 1933-1966.

‍

5. Kiingi Te Rata Tawhiao Potatau Te Wherowhero (son of Mahuta, often suffered illness and did his best to seek better outcomes for Māori by travelling to meet with King George), reigned 1912-1933.

‍

6. Kiingi Mahuta Tawhiao Potatau Te Wherowhero (son of Tawhiao, known for the dog tax and attempting to unite with parliament - also a big fan of a brass band), reigned 1894-1912.

‍

7. Kiingi Tawhiao Matutaera Te Pukepuke Tukaroto Te-a-Potatau Te Wherowhero (son of Potatau, fundamentally a bit of a pacifist who popularised poukai, started a parliament, and newspaper), reigned 1860-1894.

‍

8. Kiingi Potatau Te Wherowhero (the first Māori King who finally agreed to the position the third time he was asked) reigned 1858-1860

‍

How’d you go?! If you reply to this email and tell us your score, we’ll tell you ours…  

Remember to follow us on instagram and check in Paraire/Friday morning to have another crack fam. We believe in you 🤓.

‍

We hope this newsletter helped you to enjoy, learn more about, and deepen your connection with te Kiingitanga today

Hei ā tērā wiki!/Till next week!

‍