The Journey of Tainui through the Hauraki Region: A Version by Hoani Nahe of Ngāti Maru

The story of the arrival and journey of Tainui through the northern reaches of Aotearoa is one of the great classics of the iwi storytelling tradition. Commencing with arrival in Whangaparāoa in the eastern Bay of Plenty and then westward travels through Te Moana-a-Toi (Bay of Plenty), before entering Hauraki the story has been recorded in a number of places including the well-known Tainui by Lesley Kelly and Nga Iwi o Tainui by Pei Te Hurinui Jones. The journey is also recalled in Hauraki tribal traditions - written by authorities such as Hoani Nahe of Ngāti Maru and Tukumana Te Taniwha of Ngāti Whanaunga - and it is those traditions that we turn to in this post.

Here is an extract from a manuscript written by the great Ngāti Maru scholar Hoani Nahe. This manuscript is entitled ‘An Account of the Emigration of the Maoris from Hawaiki’ and is located at the Auckland Library, in central Auckland. The catalogue entry is NZMS713. (Here is the text unedited and as translation is to come.)

Ko te take i haere mai ai te tangata ki tenei Motu he 

Whawhai nui noa atu i Hawaiki tini noa iho 

te tangata ki tenei whawhaitanga tini noa iho hoki 

te tangata ki te hinganga. Ko te ingoa o tenei 

parekura ko te Ratorua. Nga tangata nana tenei 

parekura ko Heta tetahi, ko Uenuku tetahi 

No taua whawhai nei ka riri tonu ki a raua kaore 

i mau te rongo no reira ka whai mai nei tetahi 

Ka noho atu na tetahi ko nga mea tenei i haere mai 

nei ki konei ko nga Maori ko nga mea i noho

atu na ko nga Irahu? Pea ---

No te taenga mai ki konei ka titoa atu he waiata 

Ko taua parekura nei mo te Ratorua 

__________________________________

Kei te mutunga mai o nga

Wharangi kua patua te timata atu,

3. 

Ka noho te iwi nei i Hawaiki, ka mea ki te

tarai waka mo ratou hei rapu whenua hou mo ratou 

Ka taraia te waka ra, ka oti, Ko Tainui te ingoa o te 

Waka, ka oti, ka maunu ki te wai, Ka utaina te waka

ra ko nga tangata nei o runga i a Tainui ko Hotunui

ko Hoturoa, ko Hotupapa, ko Hotumatapu, ko nga mea 

ingoa nui enei, Nga wahine ko Marama ko Whaka 

otirangi, ka uta te waka ra, Ka tahi ka karanga

mai nga tangata o uta ki a Hotu, E Hotu e, he

tamatea, Ka tahi ka karanga atu a Hotunui

He ahakoa, tukua atu maua nei ko te tamatea

ki te moana whawhai ai, Katahi ka ruruku a

Hotu i te awa mo tana waka.

Katahi ka rere mai te waka ra, ka whiti mai

ki tenei motu, ka kite i te whero o te pohutukawa 

A TAINIHIHI

ka whiua te kura ∧ ki te moana, he tarutaru whero

tenei mea te kura, ka (Tauhoa) pae ki uta ki Whangapara

KA KITEA E MAHIA, NO REIRA TE WHAKATAUKI NEI TE KURAPAE 

-awa e tupu mai nei ano i reira tera tarutaru 

WA

Ka ahu mai te rere whakararo nei, para ∧ mai i 

Whitianga, ka mahue mai te whakawhiti i reira, ka 

hoe mai te waka ra, Moehau, ka taka kei roto o 

Hauraki, hoe tonu ka u ki te Anaputa, he Ana 

Kohatu, puta tonu, puta tonu, ko te haerenga o 

Tainui tera puta, hoe tonu, ki te Waiwhaka-

rukuhanga, kei waenganui o Waihou o Piako

Ka mahue te punga o Tainui i reira, he 

kohatu nui e takoto mai nei ano, A, tae noa mai 

ki tenei ra, tona ingoa to tera kohatu ko 

te Pungapunga, ka hoe te waka ra, ka ahu 

whakawaho o Hauraki, ka ma te taha ki te

hauauru, Whakatiwai, Wharekawa, ka mahue 

x
x

Marama raua ko tana taurekareka

i uta, hoe tonu te waka ra, A, ka tae ki 

Tamaki, ka hoe tonu i roto i te awa, ka u 

4.

ki Otahuhu ra ko te iwi ra i tana waka kia puta

ki tua ki Manuka, kaore i taea, to noa to noa, kaore

i taea kaore i aha, Te take i kore ai e taea te waka

ra, Ko Marama i moe i tana taurereka, Tera te 

wahine ra raua ko tana taurereka te haere mai ra, 

Rokohanga mai te iwi ra e to ana i tana waka, ka eke 

te wahine ra ki runga ki te waka, ka whakahua i tana 

taua Toia Tainui te patu ki te moana ma wai e

to ma te whakarangona ake i te taha o te rangi, he 

tarawai nuku, he tarawai rangi puna? teina nau mai 

Nau mai a Tane koakoa e tane Rangahau e tane 

takoto atu ana te ngaro ki tatahi turuturu haere

mai ana te wai o te hika o Marama e patua ana

mai e te komuri hau na runga o Waihi kei reira te 

iringa o Tainui mairea? Uura? te ra wewero te ra

nga tangata i whakaririka mamau ki te taura, Mamau 

ki te taura kia tumatorohia atu taku tumatatoro

hoi? Hoa Turukiruki panekeneke ihu o waka turuki 

turuki (Ka oho katoa te iwi ra) Panekepaneke ka 

tahi ka taea te waka ra (No te tau a te wahine

ra, katahi ka mohio te iwi ra, kua pa a Marama

ki tana taurereka, na te kupu ra, Turuturu haere mai 

ana te wai o te hika o Marama) ka puta te waka

ra ki tera moana, ka hoe u rawa atu i Awhitu

ka mahue nga neke i reira he kopi te rakau

ara he karaka ka hoe i reira ka u ki Heahea

i Kawhia, ka tau ki reira e tau mai nei ano he

kohatu, a tae noa mai ki tenei ra Ko Tainui

tona ingoa to tera waka kohatu ka noho i reira

nga tangata...

Source

Extract taken from 'Account of the emigration of the Maoris from Hawaiki' by Hone Nahe, 9 January 1863. Manuscript held at the Auckland Library, GNZMMSS 713.