Noho Marae

Hello, what a busy day I had. I went to a noho for one of my classes yesterday. I am in a Maori performing arts class and I had to go as a requirement. "Noho" roughly means "to dwell". For the noho, I had to spend the night in a marae (meeting house). The Maori are the indigenous people of New Zealand, incase you did not know. So yeah, I found out I had the noho about six hours before I had to be there. That was fun going to my classes and rushing back home to pack.

When I arrive, I had to follow their traditions and take off my shoes before entering the marae. My class all sat and listened to the speakers. The group new to the marae, us, had to sing a waiata (song). (We sang the song we got assessed on awhile back, so we were not terrible.) We then had to do the Maori greeting of touching our forehead and nose to those who have already been to this marae.

 After we ate dinner, a guest speaker talked to us about Maori instruments. Most of the instruments are similar to flutes. They can be made from all types of materials. My favorite was the putorino. It is interesting because it is shaped like a cocoon and can make three distinct sounds. I was able to make a koauau, which is another type of flute. You have to blow across the hole to make a sound. I was able to make a sound last night, but this morning I could not do it to save my soul.  

This class is so much fun because not only am I learning another language, I am also learning a new culture. The hardest part about the class is trying to pronounce the words correctly.

This is the web address for the marae on my campus. I have my Maori class in it. The picture is only of the outside, but the inside is big with lots of wood carvings with mattresses to sit on. There is also a grass area that you can kind of see in the picture. It is nice to sit on it and practice the waiatas. The about us history section has a picture of the Maori greeting.

 Te Herenga Waka Marae | Victoria University Wellington

This is just a basic guide on how to pronounce Maori words. Just remember if you ever travel to Whakatane. It is not pronounced "whack- a- tane". People will know you are not from NZ. Just a a hint, the "wh" in Maori is pronounced like a "f" sound in English. 

 The Maori Language

Here are two links to see pictures from orientation.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2010787&l=fcaf3&id=80100963 

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2011007&l=fb362&id=80100963