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Reo Ora Heading

Hei whakanui i te waka wānanga, i whakaterehia ai ki Rāhui Pōkeka i te wīkene ka mahue ake nei, tēnā kia tirohia e tātou ētehi o ngā rerenga kōrero a te Māori, e whakamahi nei i te horopaki o te waka me ōna āhuatanga hei taunaki i tētehi whakaaro, hei whakakaha rānei i tētehi kōrero.

In celebration of the waka wānanga that was held in Huntly this past weekend. Let us look at some Māori sayings within a waka context used to reinforce an idea or emphasise something said.

#ReoOra #MaoriLanguage

 

Kua huri te ihu o te waka

He kōrero ka puta nō tētehi rōpū ka hoki ki te kāinga, he pai hoki tēnei hei poroporoaki. Hei ōna wā, e rongohia ana ētehi e mea ana ‘kua huri te kei o te waka’, kāore tēnei i te tika, ko te ihu ka huri, ko te kei ka whai

 

Kua huri te ihu o te waka

The prow of the waka has turned

We’re off now...

Used by a group who are about to go home, this is also appropriate for a farewell. Sometimes you hear some saying, ‘kua huri te kei o te waka’ (the stern of the waka has turned), this is inaccurate, the prow turns, the stern follows.


 

Hoea tō waka

He kīwaha tēnei, he tohutohu hoki o roto, ā, puta mai ana ka hiahia ana tētehi ki te kī ki tētehi kia whāia tāna e pai ai, me kī, hoea tō waka, takahia tō ake huarahi, rānei.

 

Hoea tō waka

Paddle your boat

Go on then...

This is an imperative idiom, with a form of instruction within it, used when wanting to tell someone to do as they feel necessary, if you want to say to someone to do what they want to do, you say, ‘hoea tō waka’or ‘takahia tō ake huarahi’ (follow you own path).

 E hoe ana tō waka ki whea?

 

Ki te rongohia tēnei kōrero, kua mōhio te tangata mōna te kōrero nei, e pātaitia ana te nui o tana kai i tana pereti.

 

E hoe ana tō waka ki whea?

Where is your waka heading?

Where are you going with all that fuel?

If someone hears this they’ll know it’s about them, questioning the amount of food on their plate.


 

Kaua e rangirua te hāpai o te hoe, e kore tō tātou waka e ū ki uta

He whakataukī tēnei, ā, e tohutohu ana kia mahi ngātahi te iwi, kia ngākau tapatahi, kaua e ngākaurua.


 

Kaua e rangirua te hāpai o te hoe, e kore tō tātou waka e ū ki uta

Don’t paddle out of time, the waka will not reach its destination

This is a proverb referring to working together in unison with the one mind and the one heart.

 

Ki te hoe!

He kupu akiaki tēnei i te tangata, kia tīmata ai ia ki te mahi, kia kaua ai hoki e noho noa iho. Tērā pea kātahi anō tētehi kaupapa ka ara ake, ā, he pai kia puta tēnei kōrero hei whakatītina i te iwi kia tīmata ai ngā mahi. 

Ki te hoe!

To the paddle

Let’s go! 

This is used to prompt people to start something, and not just sit around. If there is an initiative that just come up, this is a good saying to encourage the people to get going and start working. 


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Article By: Hariru Roa & Paraone Gloyne



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