Karori Library celebrated Matariki on 20th June with the community, our friends and whānau. We made waka from flax and driftwood. Thank you everyone who came and participated. Whakanuia Matariki – Happy New Year!
Matariki
Matariki Stories
Matariki is just around the corner. If you want to find out more about it and how we New Zealanders celebrate our Maori New Year, Matariki by Melanie Drewery and Bruce Potter is a very good picture book to read. It has very lovely illustrations and also explains what Matariki is and what people do to celebrate it in a very simple way. It’s a delight to read so check it out!Also The Seven Stars of Matariki by Toni Rolleston-Cummins tells another legend about how the star cluster came into being. It’s very entertaining to read.
Whakanuia Matariki
Whakanuia Matariki/Happy New Year!
In early Pipiri/June a small but very special cluster of stars becomes visible from Aotearoa/New Zealand, in our winter skies. The Māori name for this constellation is Matariki and traditionally its arrival marks the beginning of the Māori New Year. For some iwi, especially in the west, the star Puanga (or Reigel) marks the new year, as it is more easily visable. For many New Zealanders Matariki/Puanga is a special time to celebrate with loved ones, and a time to reflect on our own place in the world, our culture and heritage.
There are lots of fun and exciting events and activities happening in our community in celebration of Matariki, including some free library events for the whole family – nau mai, haere mai – all welcome! There are also some wonderful Matariki festivities happening around Wellington, and at Te Papa. so gather your friends and whanau and get involved!
Nga whetu o Matariki – Matariki Stars
Did you know that the Matariki constellation can be see from many parts of the world and not just in Aotearoa New Zealand? It also has several different names! In Japan the star cluster is known as Subaru (like the car), meaning united or getting together. In other cultures the stars are known as Pleiades, the Seven Sisters, Matali’i and Messier 45.
For Māori, Matariki means the eyes of God (mata ariki) or little eyes (mata riki). This refers to a traditional Māori myth where the eyes watch over the Aotearoa, the land and its people. The other star celebrated in Māori culture at the same time of year as Matariki is Puanga, or Reigal . Puanga is the bright white star seen over Orions belt – or, as the Māori saw it, the berry bait hanging over the perch of the snare for the kereru.
You might like to see if you can find the Matariki constellation in the sky yourself (if you can brave getting out of bed at 5am it will definately be worth it!) Follow this beginner’s guide to finding Matariki or this link: help finding Matariki.
And if you’re interested in Astronomy, here’s a selection of cool books available in our collection:
Matariki at Karori Library
Nau mai haere mai. Whakanuia te wā o Matariki i te Wharepukapuka o Karori. Ka hanga tātou i ngā waka mai te harakeke me te tāwhaowhao. Rāatu 20 Piripi, 3.30 – 5.00
Celebrate Matariki at Karori Library. We will be making waka from flax and driftwood. Wed 20th June, 3.30 – 5.00pm.
Everybody welcome, bring your whānau & friends – we’re looking forward to celebrating Matariki with you!
Matariki Storytelling @ the Central Library
Nau mai, haere mai. Help us celebrate Matariki at our special storytelling session. Come along to hear traditional and original stories read by Apirana Taylor – including stories about Matariki.
Saturday, June 9, 2012, 2 – 3pm in the children’s story area on the ground floor of the Central Library. All tamariki welcome, and your whānau & friends.
Karori BookBusters July Meeting
Karori had a small group yesterday for our July meeting but it didn’t minimize our fun!
The theme for this month was Matariki and myths/legends. After a discussion about Matariki we read a story about the legend of the 7 stars of Matariki. We shared our own cultural stories. Then we wrote our new year wishes on leaf templates. They are displayed on our special wish tree in the library.
We had a great time.
Matariki 2010
Matariki 2010 (Maori New Year 2010) starts on June 14th. To celebrate this fantastic occasion we have some super cool things happening for you! Check out the events calendar for more infomation.
14th June, 3.30pm: Matariki tree and a puppet show at Kilbirnie Library to kick off the celebrations
15th June, 1.30pm: Magical storytelling, activities and badge making at Tawa Library
16th June, 3.30pm: Magical storytelling, activities and badge making at Newtown Library, along with the opening of a children’s art exhibition.
17th June, 3.30pm: activities and badge making at Island Bay Library
17th June, 3.30pm: Make Clay Kaitaki (guardians) at Miramar Library. Bookings required – ring the library.
22nd June, 3.30pm: Magical storytelling, activities and badge making at Kilbirnie Library.
24th June, 4pm: Magical storytelling, activities and badge making at Karori Library, with special performance by a Kapa Haka group.
Matariki Story Times
Kia ora!
To celebrate Matariki we are holding 3 storytimes in te reo Māori. Come along to brush up on your language skills and listen to some beautiful Maori stories!
Miramar Library- 23rd June 10.15am
Newtown Library- 24th June 10.30am
Cummings Park (Ngaio) Library- 25th June 10.30am