The Haka of the New Zealand All Blacks

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From: [email protected] (Paul Waite) Newsgroups: rec.sport.rugby.union
Subject: Re: NEW ZEALAND HAKA - Ka Mate, Haka of the All Blacks
Date: 9 Jun 1996 08:08:35 GMT Organization: The Internet Group
Message-ID: <[email protected]>

Due to the demand for me to e-mail the article I wrote just before the '95 world cup,
I've decided to post it again. Here it is...

KA MATE - HAKA OF THE ALL BLACKS

by Paul Waite 27th June 1995

What is Haka?

The Maori people here have always excelled in the art of haka,
which is the generic term for Maori dance. Henare Teowai of Ngati Porou,
an acknowledged master of the art of haka was asked on his death-bed,
"What is the art of performing haka?".
He replied: "Kia korero te katoa o te tinana." (The whole body should speak)

Another definition was provided by Alan Armstrong in his book Maori Games and Haka (Reed, 1964) as follows.

"The haka is a composition played by many instruments.
Hands, feet, legs, body, voice, tongue, and eyes all play their part in blending together
to convey in their fullness the challenge, welcome, exultation, defiance or contempt of the words."

"It is disciplined, yet emotional. More than any other aspect of Maori culture,
this complex dance is an expression of the passion, vigour and identity of the race.
It is at it's best, truly, a message of the soul expressed by words and posture.."

One of the initial refrains which the leader of the haka utters
just prior to everyone performing the haka itself is shown below.
These words simply serve to remind the performers how to comport themselves when they do the haka.

They should be shouted out in a ferocious and staccato manner,
designed to instil strength and determination into the performers,
such that they enact the haka with the power and force required.

Ringa pakia
Uma tiraha
Turi whatia
Hope whai ake
Waewae takahia kia kino

Slap the hands against the thighs
Puff out the chest
Bend the knees
Let the hip follow
Stamp the feet as hard as you can

Also essential to the art of haka are pukana (dilating of the eyes),
whetero (protruding of the tongue performed by men only),
ngangahu (similar to pukana, performed by both sexes),
and potete (the closing of the eyes at different points in the dance, performed by the women only).

These expressions are used at various times in the performance to lend meaning and force to the words.
It is important to realise that the most exciting haka are not uniformly enacted,
with all participants acting in time. The best haka involve a good deal of spontaneity and creativity as the performers interpret the words.

Different Styles of Haka
There are several styles of haka. Ka Mate was originally of the ngeri style, which is a short,
free-form haka where the performers interpret as they feel fit.
It is also performed without weapons,
and is not therefore a war-dance as is generally supposed.

The peruperu is a style of haka for true war-dance.
It involves weapons and is characterised by a high jump with legs folded under at the end.

Observers of the All Blacks will note that they perform this same jump,
which is a point of irritation amongst haka purists.
In fact the All Black rendition of Ka Mate may have undergone quite a few
changes along the way to make it more impressive.

The Origin of Ka Mate

In around 1820 a chief by the name of Te Rauparaha composed Ka Mate, the most well known haka.

Te Rauparaha was High Chief of the Ngati Toa and held sway over lands from Porirua
right up the Kapiti Coast to Levin or thereabouts, and also Kapiti Island.

"Ka mate! Ka mate!" were the words uttered by Te Rauparaha as he hid himself
in a kumara pit from his pursuing enemies, the Ngati Tuwharetoa.

Fleeing for his life he came to Te Wharerangi and asked for his protection.
Although reluctant, Te Wharerangi eventually agreed and bid him hide in a kumara pit.
His wife, Te Rangikoaea sat over the entrance to it.
There are two stories put forward as to why Te Rangikoaea sat over the entrance thus.

The first has it that no male of consequence would ever put himself in a position
where he would be beneath the genital organs of a woman.
Thus the hiding place would be discounted by the pursuers.
Of course Te Rauparaha was willing to forego custom in order to survive.

The second tells that she sat there in order to have a neutralising
effect on the incantations recited by the pursuing Chiefs;
the female organs were believed to have a shielding effect.

As the pursuers arrived, Te Rauparaha muttered "Ka Mate! ka mate!"
under his breath (I die! I die!), but when the Rotoaira chief indicated
the man they sought had gone to Rangipo he murmured
"Ka Ora! ka ora!" (I live! I live!).
However when Tauteka doubted the words of Te Wharerangi he gloomily muttered
"Ka mate! ka mate!" once again. Then, when his pursuers were
convinced he was not in Te Wharerangi's pa, but had made for Taranaki
he exclaimed "Ka ora, ka ora! Tenei te tangata puhuruhuru
nana nei i tiki mai whakawhiti te ra!"
(I live! I live! For this is the hairy man who has fetched the sun and caused it to shine again!).

The hairy man in the Haka refers to the chief Te Wharerangi who gave
Te Raparaha protection despite his wish not to be involved.
Te Wharerangi was a man of very noticeable hairy habit.

"Upane", literally means "terrace", and probably refers to the steps which were cut into
the side of the pit for access to and from it. Each "upane"
describes the tentative steps Te Raparaha made as he emerged
from the pit to see if the coast was clear.

One could imagine his joy at not only eluding certain death by a whisker,
but also coming out of the dark kumara pit into the light of the day - "Whiti te ra! Hi!!"

Going on from the kumara pit to the court yard of Te Wharerangi,
before Te Rangikoaea and the assembled people, Te Rauparaha then performed his famous haka,
which he had composed whilst in hiding.
The variation of this used by the All Blacks is given below,
together with the translation. Note that the words have
been split in some cases to indicate the cadence of
the syllables as the haka is performed.

KA MATE
Ka mate! Ka mate! Ka ora! Ka ora! < >< > I die! I die! I live! I live!
Ka mate! Ka mate! Ka ora! Ka ora! < >< > I die! I die! I live! I live!
Tenei te tangata puhuru huru < >< > This is the hairy man
Nana nei i tiki mai < >< > Who fetched the Sun
Whakawhiti te ra < >< > And caused it to shine again
A upa ... ne! ka upa ... ne! < >< > One upward step! Another upward step!
A upa ... ne! ka upa ... ne! < >< > One upward step! Another upward step!
A upane, kaupane, upane, kaupane
Whiti te ra! Hi!!< >< > The Sun shines!!

Incidentals:
1) A kumara is a sweet potato - very nice with a roast!
2) Some pronunciation hints..
Note: these hints are crude, and are not meant to be a definitive guide to maori pronuciation.
The 'wh' is pronounced as an 'f' or 'ph'.
The 'e' on the end of a word is sounded as if the word ended in 'ay' as in 'hay'.
The 'au' is pronounced as the 'ou' in 'hour'.
The 'u's are all long like 'ou' in 'you'.
The 'a's are all sounded long as in 'ah'.

The Haka and Rugby

As far as rugby is concerned the first haka in an overseas
representative match was performed by the New Zealand Native
Team to tour the UK in 1888-89. It isn't clear whether or not it
was Ka Mate which they performed, but it is probable.
Apparently at some venues they went to some trouble to
entertain, bringing out mats and other items onto the field to
complement the performance. In fact this team was not
entirely composed of maori, as many assume. The tour was
not 'officially' sanctioned, and cost each player the large
sum of 250 pounds passage. This made it impossible to find the
required number of maori, and at least two 'dark-skinned' pakeha were included.

The first use of the haka by the All Blacks was by
the "Originals" in 1905 on the first overseas tour by a full-scale
New Zealand representative side. It was also on this tour that
the name 'All Blacks' was used. The two most distinctive
features of the New Zealand team were thus instigated
right from the very beginning. The haka became a permanent
fixture for the All Blacks from then on.

An interesting little anecdote is told regarding the 1924 New Zealand
team which became known as the famous "Invincibles", due to
their winning every match on tour.

This team had as their most famous son, a young maori boy called George Nepia.
He it was who led the All Black haka, Ka Mate, in the first match against Devon on September 13th, 1924.
The haka was enthusiastically received by the crowd of 18,000,
who then watched the All Blacks win 11-0, but a "prominent university sportsman"
who attended was moved to write a letter which appeared in the next day's paper.
In it he asserted: "Cat-calls were quite uncalled-for",
and added: "South Africans do not open their games with Zulu cries!".
Obviously, this gentleman had never visited either country.

The words of Ka Mate, "The Haka" do not have direct relevance to rugby,
and were composed for a particular reason as told above.
In the case of the All Blacks the 'loose' translation of the haka challenge,
I feel, could be written down thus..

"We are the All Blacks, of the New Zealand people."
"Here we are to face you."
"We will do you the honour of playing to the limits
"that our hearts and sinews impose upon us."
"We will be very hard to beat."
Whiti te ra! Hi!

A Note to Travellers
To all prospective visitors to New Zealand, I would urge you to
investigate the maori culture which is very rich indeed.
In particular make sure that you see a 'genuine' haka performance.
The shear passion and force of a well executed haka is guaranteed to send shivers down your spine!

Bibliography
Alan Armstrong, Maori Games and Haka, Reed, 1964