Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air
See below for English translation
E ai ki te pepeha ko Te Arawa te waka hourua, ko Tamatekapua te tangata hautu, ko Ngātoroirangi te Ariki Ihorei.Kāore i mōhiotia te tokomaha o ngā rangatira i mā waka mai i Hawaiki Tawhitiarerae ki Hawaiki Tahutahu, engari e tika ana te kōrero he tāne, he wahine, he tamariki otīā, he rangatira anake.
Ko Tahupiki he rangatira pērā ki ērā o ngā tangata nui. Kāore e tino kōrerongia tēnei tangata, he ahakoa e rua o āna mahi nui.
Mātua ka noho rātou ko ōna tangata ki Whangarā.
Ka kī etehi o ngā kaumātua, ka wehe te waka o Te Arawa i Hawaiki Tawhitiareare, ka mau ngā mamari i ngā hau pūkerikeri o Nukuteapiapi, nā wai ka uta ki te taha whiti o Hawaiki Tahutahu, ki Whangarā.
Ka whakarerea ia ka nōhia te takutai e ōna rangatira, ā, ka hoea tonutia a Te Arawa i ngā wai uriuri o te moana, nā wai ka ū ki Maketu me ēra atu o ngā kāinga whakahirahira.
Wheoi anō, ka timatangia rātou ki te whakaara whare mōna.
Ka nui ki mua, ka anipā ngā whatumanawa o te iwi nō rātou ngā whenua o Te Tai Rāwhiti. Kāore i kōrerongia te iwi nei, wheoi anō he iwi taketake pea.
Nā wai ka timata he whakararuraru, ka tuki te rae ki te rae, ka rere ngā kupu hahani, kātahi ko te patu ki te tangata, taihoa pea ka pakanga nui.
Ka noho te hau kāinga, he pō takoto riri kia rengarenga katoa ai te iwi o Tahupiki.
E hamama ana ngā waha, ka mau te ia o te rūnanga i a Whakapiri, he atua iti nō Tahupiki, nā reira i mōhio ai rātou ki ngā pēwheatanga o te hoa riri.
Ka ara ake a Kahukura, atua nui o Tahupiki, ka rere āna kupu, kia tāpukengia te iwi i raro i ngā whare e ora ai rātou.
Ko te take e puta mai ana te hoa ngangare ki te tahu i o rātou whare, he hiahia nō rātou kia patua katoatia te iwi.
Kai aro katoa te iwi kai raro e takoto ana, tīka hoki, kai waho o te whare te hoa ngangare me ā rātou rākau motumotu e tahu haere ana i ngā whare puni.
Ka rere te pāoa ki te rangi, kai te harikoa te iwi taketake, auahi ana ngā whareraupō, ngiha kau ana ngā tuanui me ngā pakitara.
E kore rawa he tangata e ora.
Ka awatea te pō e kōmau ana te whenua, he auahi kai rangi, kai raro te hoa ngangare e whakanā ana, ka ara ake a Tahupiki me tōna iwi ka puta i ngā kongakonga o te ahi, e pakapaka ana te kanohi o Tahupiki i te wera o te ahi nā reira ka tapā ia ki te ingoa ko Tahuwera.
Ka mau ōna ringaringa i ngā rākau motumotu, kai te pupuri i ngā rākau pakari, e hahau ana ki ngā ūpoko me ngā tinana o te iwi.
Ka hinga te tokomaha i a Tahupiki me ōna tangata.
Ka mutu ana te riri ka emi mai ngā rangatira, he kōrero ngākau kai hoki mai te ringa kaha ki te rae o te mahunga.
Nā reira ka whakatauhia kia whāia e rātou ngā tapuwae o Tamatekapua, ka kohikohia ngā onge itiiti ka huri te ihu ki te Tokerau. Ka mahuetia a Whangarā me ngā taumahatanga katoa.
Te Arawa is the sea-ocean travelling vessel, Tamatekapua was its commander, and the high priest was Ngatoroirangi.
It’s hard to know exactly how many people travelled, but it is often agreed, men, women, and children. All fearless explorers with a desire to start a new chapter of their lives. Among the many travelling chiefs was a man named Tahupiki.
When the Arawa berthed at Whangarā, a series of events took place.
The most significant was Tahupiki; with his small band of followers, they decided to try establishing a colony in this part of the newly discovered lands.
Another point regarding Tahupiki is a host of names associated with him; however, also the fact that this chief did not arrive on the Arawa waka but made his way to Hawaiki Tahutahu via Te Whatu o Ranganuku, another famous sea voyaging vessel of the past.
For this story, we will stick with where we left off, that being with his followers.
They decided to stay in Whangarā as his relations turned the nose of their vessel and headed north.
Since we still speak of Tahupiki today, we know that they were semi-successful in establishing their colony. But trouble soon reared its head as we heard that, in time, the earlier occupants of Whangarā turned aggressive towards Tahupiki. The conflict finally turned into a desire to eradicate the newcomers to the beach area.
Under the cover of darkness, it was decided to burn all the houses with those inside. Tahupiki was forewarned by a minor deity named Whakapiri that, along with his people, they would be attacked in the night. After consulting his superior atua, Kahukura, he ordered his people to burrow down into the soil, creating a safe space to save them all from death.
They all survived the attack.
On the following morning, Tahupiki rose with his people from the remains of his smouldering house.
As per tradition, he took the name Tahuwera to acknowledge the cowardly night attack, for he did not escape unscathed and was said to have been burnt. Hence, he took the name Tahuwera.
With new courage, his people turned on their unwary attackers, who had been lulled into a sense of comfort, thinking that all the inhabitants had perished.
No enemy names have survived; the area where the conflict occurred is only remembered as being at Whangarā, and Tahupiki took the name Tahuwera.
With the battle complete, a council was called, and upon listening to the hearts of his followers, who were cautious of another attack, it was decided to reconnect with their relations of Ngāti Ohomairangi. All they knew was that Tamatekapua and Ngatoroirangi had turned the nose of the waka north before disappearing over the horizon.
They quickly picked up anything valuable and followed the shoreline north in search of a new place where they would be safe.