He tangi - A Lament by Te Mamanga (aka. Numanga) of Ngati Maru - with translation by Dr Raukura Roa.

We are fortunate to have this moteatea by a tupuna of our own Iwi and equally  fortunate for the translation by Dr Raukura Roa who included this moteatea in the analysis work for her PhD thesis.  

I've included the full copy here as I make a reference to part of this waiata in my notes about the Kahui groups (in this blog).

1. Tēnei au te hi hiri nei, te keu nei,

2. Ki te whare taka mate

3. O tō kuia, o Apakura, e i.

4. E moe, e tama, i te whare o te ika,

5. Ki tomo atu koe ki roto Punga-tatara;

6. Ko te whare o Uru-ngā-ngana,

7. I tīkina atu ai ngā waka uru mate.

8. Ka pine he uira, ka hoka i te rangi;

9. Ko te tohu o te mate ka hoki mai ki au, e i.

10. Māu e kimi atu he tapuae rako,

11. Ko te tapuae o Monoa

12. I awhitia ai e te kāhui tara,

13. Ka rewa a Tara i Whenua-kura, e i.

14. Ko hea tō ara i haere ai koe?

15. Ko te ara o aitu, e i.

16. E tu, e pā, i te kei o te waka.

17. Nāu tē tatari te hau whenua tangi roa;

18. Ka pā te kihau ki te rā tukupū,

19. Ka rewa ō tohu ki te hiwi ki Raukawa, e i.

20. E iri, e hine, i runga Te Rangi-aoao-nunui;

21. Ko te waka tēnā o Tiki-te-pou-rangi,

22. Ka ma’ a ki te ao, e,

23. Ka tau te punga, ka tau ki raro.

24. Hiwia mai, kia rewa ai, e i.

25. He punga whakarewaina i te punga i Hawaiki,

26. E tau ana te pai o te moana, e i.

27. Ku’ rongo noa koe, i tu ki ro’ te moana,

28. He tū kōpiri, e i,

29. Ka ū ki uta he tapuae hikitia,

30. He tapuae heuea.

31. Ka ngaro koutou ki Whiti-a-naunau,

32. Ki Whiti-a-korekore,

33. Ki ngā taua i mate ai

34. A Tupua rāua ko Tawhito, e i.

35. Tūiri ki runga ra, ka ngaehe kei raro,

36. He ao tamawahine, he ao o Whaitiri.

37. Kaua taku ipo e haria pukutia;

38. Haria ka whakawai iho.

39. Ko te mokopuna tēnā a Hau-tae-pō,

40. A Rua-pū-tahanga, e i

41. Ka maea ki roto te Rama-nui,

42. Whare hanga a Porou, i tākina mai ai;

43. Nōna te waha tapu, no Kai-hamu, 

44. E tama, e i. 

45. Ka riro ra, e, ngā tama toa o Tū-te-ngana-hau. 

46. Māu e hume atu te maro o Whakatau, 

47. Tō waha ra ki te riri, e i. 

Wirihana Te Hihimua - Extracts from Cowan's "The Bush Explorers"

THE NEW ZEALAND RAILWAYS MAGAZINE, VOLUME 5, ISSUE 4 (AUGUST 1, 1930), THE BUSH EXPLORERS — STORY OF THE STRATFORD MAIN TRUNK RAILWAY ROUTE,The Bush Explorers, STORY OF THE STRATFORD MAIN TRUNK RAILWAY ROUTE .

(Written for the “New Zealand Railways Magazine” by JAMES COWAN.)

And “Wirihana!” I see him now, with the eye of memory—big, straight-backed, bearded “Wirihana,” squatting by the fire blanketed like a Maori, pipe in the corner of his mouth, a shrewdly humorous twinkle in the tail of his eye, though his face retains the gravity of a Maori tohunga. What a store of bush lore and war adventure he had crammed into his fifty-odd years of life! Like the immortal Jim Bludso, “a keerless man in his talk” was “Wirihana” when he relaxed, but there was always sound wisdom in his most whimsical mood. He was a captain in the line of stout fellows who blazed the way and made this land fit for peaceful settlement.

Well, that was thirty-six years ago. All the old hands are gone; “Wirihana” and Cadman, Surveyor Munro Wilson, and the rest of them have carried their last pikaus, crossed the last range. Nearly all; out of the eight pakehas, Julian and myself are left; I haven't heard of faithful swagman Puhi for many a year, but I hope he is still above ground.

“Wirihana” predicted, as we climbed the steep papa ridges between the various valleys, that the railway builders of the future would find the job a slow one, because of the numerous long tunnels required. He was right; but the back of the job has been broken, and before long we shall see the triumphant finish of the line for which Auckland and Taranaki fought so strenuously with voice and pen in the young ‘Nineties

Ngakorako | Rako | Korako

Turi found the Patea district occupied by a white race of people who were called "Korako" (albino) the males of whom he killed and took the women and girls as members of his tribe and as wives. Extract from White, p.138, 148 

______________________________________________________________

A Lament, Ngāti Maru - Waitara, by Te Mamanga (Ngata & Jones, 1970, pp. 348-355).

Māu e kimi atu he tapuae rako,

Ko te tapuae o Monoa

I awhitia ai e te kāhui tara,

Ka rewa a Tara i Whenua-kura, e i.

Ko hea tō ara i haere ai koe?

Seek thou for the footprints of the rako, 

Also the footprints of Monoa 

Who was guarded by the tara flock, 

Hence the name Tara at Whenua-kura, e i. 

By what pathway hast thou gone?

Nga Kahui - A Collection of notes about the Kahui Descent groups of Taranaki

Before the Ngati Groups, there were Kahui Groups in Taranaki.  Notes that follow have been taken from the following texts:

• John White, Ancient Maori. 
• Apirana Ngata, He Tangi by Te Mamangu|Te Mamanga| Te Numanga 
• Smith citing Rev.Taylor Wharekura

The following Kahui Groups (in alphabetical order) are mentioned: 

#Kahui Kapua #Kahui Kauika  #Kahui Maru #Kahui Pou, #Kahui Rangi, #Kahui Rere #Kahui Rua, #Kahui Tara, #Kahui Tawake, #Kahui Toka, #Kahui Tu #Kapua Whata

Will also add details of #Kahui_Mounga in the near future.