Composer
Kīngi Kiriona
Kingi Kiriona (Ngāti Ruanui, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Apa) has established himself as a prominent composer, orator and performing artist. Kingi rose to fame while still at secondary school, winning both English and Māori sections of the National Manu Kōrero competition. His prowess in oratory and composition followed through to Tainui Regional and National Kapa Haka competitions, co-founding a new and innovative team, Te Iti Kahurangi in 2003.
Songs by this composer
-
E Te Pouaka Whakaata Māori
E Te Pouaka Whakaata Māori!
Kāore koa taku hōhā
Te kūhīhī nei i roto i ahau
Ka ngau ki taku puku, a haha!5...
more -
Te Harihari Kōrero
Kua rongo rānei koe?
more
Kua wehe atu tana wahine
Kei te mahi tarau makere
Kua rongo rānei koe?
5 A... -
Te Piki Tūranga
Tērā koia ko Okewa
Te parekawakawa ki a Taupiri
Haea iho nei e te ata
Mōhou e taku Arikinui5...
more
Poukai ki Te Arawa
Lyrics
(Kōrero)
I te matenga o Te Arikinui Te Atairangikaahu
Nā Pikiao te tono, ko te rā o tōna koroneihana
Hei rā poukai ki Te Arawa.
Nā Tūheitia te whakaae
5 ‘He kuwaha whānui kua puare
Ki te puna tangata me te puna kai e’[1]
E rau rangatira mā[2],
Huia mai ki te tāwara
O te kai a Te Arawa e!
10 E rau rangatira mā
Kia teretere mai
Kei riro i Te Iti Kahurangi e!
E Rongo, whakairihia ake ki runga
Kia tīna, hui e, tāiki e!
15 Haupū mai rā ki runga ki te
Rotorua-nui-a-Kahumatamomoe!
E, me poukai tātou!
Nāu te rourou, nāku te rourou
Ka totō te puna kai, totō te puna tangata
20 E te iwi ruku kapa o Te Arawa
Anei te toru kapa a Tainui[3]
Te rourou iti[4] a haere mai nei
Ringiringi te kete ki te whakatekau
Ki te tāwhara kai atua[5]
25 Hei aha? Hei utu i te kai korikori[6]
Hei aha? Hei utu i te kai i ngā kai
Nō te kete rukuruku a Whakaotirangi[7]
Ka noho i a Tamatekapua
Ko te uretū i paratī mai ai
30 Te ure tārewa o Te Kīngitanga
Ko Pikiao, he pou tangata,
He pou whenua, e te poukai
Ki Te Arawa!
Wāhia ngā rua, hākarimatatia[8]
35 A, te hākari, a ha ha!
Hākari ki te hua o te manaaki
Hākari ki te haka a Tāne Rore
Pūnaunau te whataroa a Manaia
Mōrurururu ana! Mōrurururu ana!
40 He aha te kai a te rangatira e?
E ko te kai a Te Arawa!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Spoken)
Following the passing of Te Arikinui,
Te Atairangikaahu, leaders of Pikiao put forward the request to host an annual poukai on the day of her coronation. Her son, King Tūheitia, agreed. Thereby opening a doorway
To the well spring of food and people
To all those assembled
Let us gather to sample the mouthwatering
Foods of Te Arawa!
My fellow guests
Lest you dawdle;
For Te Iti Kahurangi is hungry!
O Rongo, we raise our offerings
For a bountiful feast!
Thus, amass all provisions
Here at Te Rotorua-nui-a-Kahumatamomoe
Let the Poukai commence!
Your basket and mine will together provide
A well spring of food and people
To our penny-diving hosts, Te Arawa
Behold your penny-giving cousins of Tainui
But a small travelling party;
We hereby present the traditional thrupence
So as to add to the collections
And expand the kitty
For what purpose? To pay for the jelly!
For what purpose? To pay for the foods
Acquired from the basket of Whakaotirangi
Who married local hero Tamatekapua
And engendered progeny through to Pikiao
The latter producing a male line of descent to Te Kīngitanga, whose offspring lead to the arrival of Poukai here in Te Arawa!
Open the pits! Devour the contents!
Ah, dinner is served! A ha ha!
Feast on the fruits of Te Arawa hospitality
In the splendor of the provisions of Tāne Rore
Till our paunches can take no more
And we are well and truly satisfied!
What is the food of chiefs?
It is unequivocally the food of Te Arawa!
Explanation
Following the passing of Te Arikinui, Te Atairangikaahu, leaders of Pikiao put forward the request to host an annual poukai on the day of her coronation. Her son, King Tūheitia, agreed. Thereby opening a doorway to the well spring of food and people.
6. Ki te puna tangata me te puna kai e’
An expression by Taranaki fighting chief Tītokowaru, adopted by King Tāwhiao to explain the functions of Poukai. Moreover, the term ‘Punakai’ mentioned in the words of Tītokowaru was the original name for ‘Poukai’.
7. E rau rangatira mā
A common Tainui pao or short song, used to call people to the table and signal that it’s time to eat!
21. Anei te toru kapa a Tainui
One of the protocols observed at Poukai, is the offering of ‘koha’ when entering into the dining area to eat. In the early days of Poukai, thruppence or toru kapa was the most common ‘koha’ presented. This comes from a saying by King Tāwhiao: “I welcome thruppence as payment for the jelly”.
22. Te rourou iti a haere mai nei
There are many accounts associated with the term ‘rourou iti’ or ‘small basket’. In short, the term is a metaphor for a small travelling party. It comes from the utterance made by Parewhete to her husband Wairangi and his war party, ‘Why did you come with the small basket of the traveller? Better if you had stayed away with the large basket of the home dweller’ (Te Ara Encyclopedia, 2014, p.5.).
24. Ki te tāwhara kai atua
‘Whakatekau’, ‘rau-kai-atua’, and ‘tāwhara-kai-atua’ are all names given to koha presented at Poukai.
25. Hei aha? Hei utu i te kai korikori
Kai korikori – ‘food that dances’. This is what King Tāwhiao used to refer to jelly, as per the explanation given in footnote 3 above. In the context of this item, the ‘food that dances’ is also another reference for the dance of kapahaka.
27. Nō te kete rukuruku a Whakaotirangi
According to Tainui history, this was the name of the basket in which the kūmara was brought to Aotearoa.
34. Wāhia ngā rua, hākarimatatia
Taken from the stories about Ngāruawāhia and the surrounding Hākarimata ranges.