This is the Maori language component of New Zealand's national anthem.
Note that these words are not a close translation of Bracken's 1875 lyrics.
Also note that there are corrupt versions of these lyrics in circulation.
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Bracken's lyrics
You can compare the Bracken version and the Smith version. Usually choirs sing only the 1st verse of each of the versions. Sometimes the 2nd verse of the Bracken version is sung too (and occasionally the 5th). I've never heard the 3rd or 4th verse sung.|
Thomas
Bracken's version
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Smith's
version (+
macrons)
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Prof
Karetu's translation of Smith
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| God
of nations at thy feet in the bonds of love we meet. Hear our voices, we entreat, God defend our free land. Guard Pacific's triple star From the shafts of strife and war, Make her praises heard afar, God defend New Zealand. |
E
Ihowā, Atua, O ngā iwi! Mātou rā, āta whakarangona; Me aroha noa. Kia hua ko te pai; Kia tau Tō atawhai; Manaakitia mai Aōtearoa. |
O
Lord, God, of all people Listen to us, Cherish us May good flourish, May Your blessings flow. Defend Aotearoa |
| Men
of every creed and race Gather here before thy face, Asking thee to bless this place, God defend our free land. From dissension, envy, hate, And corruption guard our state, Make our country good and great, God defend New Zealand. |
ōna
mano tāngata Kiri whero, kiri mā, Iwi Māori Pākehā Rūpeke katoa, Nei ka tono ko ngā hē Māu e whakaahu kē, Kia ora mārire Aōtearoa. |
Let
all people, Red skin, white skin Maori, Pakeha, Gather before you May all our wrongs, we pray, Be forgiven So that we might say long live, Aotearoa |
| Peace,
not war, shall be our boast, But, should foes assail our coast, Make us then a mighty host, God defend our free land. Lord of battles in thy might, Put our enemies to flight, Let our cause be just and right, God defend New Zealand. |
Tōna
mana kia tū! Tōna kaha kia ū; Tona rongo hei paku Ki te ao katoa Aua rawa ngā whawhai, Ngā tutu a tata mai; Kia tupu nui ai Aōtearoa. |
May
it be forever prestigious, May it go from strength to strength May its fame spread Far and wide, Let not strife Nor dissension ensue, May it ever be great Aotearoa |
| Let
our love for Thee increase, May thy blessings never cease, Give us plenty, give us peace, God defend our free land. From dishonour and from shame Guard our country's spotless name, Crown her with immortal fame, God defend New Zealand. |
Waiho
tōna takiwā Ko te ao mārama; Kia whiti tōna rā Taiāwhio noa. Ko te hae me te ngangau Meinga kia kore kau; Waiho i te rongo mau Aōtearoa. |
Let
its territory, Be ever enlightened Throughout the land, Let envy and dissension Be dispelled, Let peace reign Over Aotearoa. |
| May
our mountains ever be Freedom's ramparts on the sea, Make us faithful unto thee, God defend our free land. Guide her in the nation's van, Preaching love and truth to man, Working out thy glorious plan. God defend New Zealand. |
Tōna
pai me toitū; Tika rawa, pono pū; Tōna noho, tāna tū; Iwi nō Ihoa. Kaua mōna whakamā; Kia hau te ingoa; Kia tū hei tauira; Aōtearoa. |
Let
its good features endure, Let righteousness and honesty prevail, Among the people of God Let it never be ashamed, But rather let its name be known Thereby becoming the model to emulate Aotearoa. |
Errors in the Text
The first verse in Māori has many errors in some published lyrics. These first crept in when the words were incorrectly transcribed by The Listener in 1940. From there, they were copied into the NZ Govt Gazette in 1979, then the NZ Govt Online website, adding a couple more mistakes each time, and from these sources to a school song book and about 60 web pages all over the internet:
- Ihoa for Ihowa. But it has been sung this way so so often, that it has become an accepted alternative in Māori speech and writing for "Jehovah."
- The two words A ta for āta
- Matoura for the two words mātou rā, (Mataura is a town in Southland)
- The words whaka rongona or whaka rongo na for the single word whakarongona,
- Or if you want to be pedantic, the word whakarongona for the word whakarangona,
- aroha roa for aroha noa,
- Manākitia mai instead of Manaakitia mai.
- Mana aki tia mai instead of Manaakitia mai.
- And in verse 2, Kiri whereo for Kiri whero
- and repeke for rūpeke,
Smiths manuscript, 1878
E Ihowa Atua, O nga iwi ! Matou ra
Ata whakarangona Me aroha noa
V.2 Kiri whero . . . Rupeke katoaWood's Music Score, 1878
E I - ho - wa A - tu - a, O nga i -wi ! Ma - tou ra
A - ta wha - ka - ro - ngo - na, Me a - ro - ha no - a
V.2 Ki - ri whe - ro . . . Ru - pe - ke ka - to - aNew Zealand Listener supplement June 21, 1940,
Could The ABs sing E Ihowa
any better than this?E I - ho - a A - tu - a, O nga i - wi! Ma - tou - ra.
A ta wha - ka ro - ngo - na, Me a - ro - ha no - a
Ki - ri whe - ro . . . Ru-pe-ke ka-to-aNew Zealand Govt Gazette supplement May 31 , 1979.
E I- ho- a A- tu- a, O nga i- wi! Ma- tou- ra
A ta wha- ka ro- ngo- na, Me a- ro- ha no- a
. . . Repeke katoaWaiata Māori H T Rikihana kura song book 1992
E Ihowa Atua, O nga iwi mātou rā,
Ata whakarongona, Me aroha noa.
. . . Manākitia mai, AotearoaGod Defend New Zealand Nobby Clark Reed Children's Books 1997
E Ihoa Atua, O nga Iwi! Matoura,
Ata whaka rongona; Me aroha noa.
. . . Repeke katoa,
The Triple Star
from the shafts of strife and war"
Te Kooti's battle flag
modified from A. Martins,Thomas Bracken was a committed Irish nationalist. He was squarely on the side of the Maori from when he first arrived in New Zealand in 1869, during the middle of Te Kooti's battles with colonial troops, in his campaign for independance for Tuhoe Maori.In February 1870 Colonel McDonnell captured this flag flown by Te Kooti's forces at Tapapa, a few miles north of Putaruru. He presented it to the Wanganui Museum, where it is still kept. A colour photo of this flag, and of other triple star flags, is in Redemption Songs, by Judith Binney (AUP 1995).
The triple stars on Te Kooti's flag were more ornate versions of the stars on the flags shown here, used to mark the appointment of Potatau Te Wherowhero as the first Maori King in 1857, and other flags of the Maori King movement. Binney (1995) suggests the star emblems represented the three main islands - then called Northern, Middle and Stewart - in unity.
In 1858, ... the Turanga chiefs ... erecting their own flagstaff which should itself be called "King." It was their statement of autonomy. Flagstaffs and flags were potent images for Maori, for the post (and the flag) claimed the land. Binney, (1995, p. 41)From this evidence, Colin Andrews, an Auckland military historian, concluded that Bracken wrote God Defend New Zealand from a hidden Maori perspective. Bracken did not spell out what he meant by his "triple star" line, but Andrews suggests that he was was happy to have the public make their own conclusions.
Andrews has also drawn attention to comments by Elsdon Best (1986 p.17) about three tapu baskets (kete) of knowledge, symbolised as three four-pointed stars on their flags, that were the baskets in which Tane conveyed the stars to clothe and beautify his father Rangi, the sky. Notice how the three star symbols on the older flags are inside three square baskets symbols, and how Te Kooti's stars have have a woven appearance.
Traditional Maori thinking presents us with three sources of knowledge. These three sources of knowledge are spoken of as the three baskets of knowledge which Tane brought down from the heavens.
- First is the kete-aronui which holds our knowledge gained from observation that could help mankind (which Pakeha culture calls the sciences and humanities).
- Second, the kete-tuauri which holds our knowledge of the patterns of energy behind our sense experience, (which Pakeha call psychology, philosophy, ritual and prayer).
- Third is the kete-tuatea which holds our knowledge of the dark arts of survival (which Pakeha call agriculture, defensive works and warfare.).
Bracken's oblique reference to Maori sovereignty is reinforced by a drawing on the cover of the 1878 music score of the anthem. The cover drawing shows two flags: the first is Te Hakituatahi, which was used in 1835 as the national flag of the independent state of New Zealand.
This flag was recognised as the flag of the confederation of chiefs of the United Tribes of New Zealand. The other flag shown on the music cover is the Standard of the British Royal Family.
It is notable that in the Maori lyrics commissioned by the colonial government, the "triple star" line is replaced by
Kia hua ko te pai May good flourish.Webpages:
http://flagspot.net/flags/nz_maoh.html
http://www.mch.govt.nz/nzflag/history/nzwars.html
Library books:
Elsdon Best, The Astronomical Knowledge of the Maori, N.Z Govt Printer,reprint, ( 1986). Allan Sutherland, Flags of New Zealand, 1959
An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand /Flags NZ Govt. printer, 1966
The Flag bulletin ; no. 106, Flags of New Zealand, Flag Research Center, 1984.
Thomas Bracken
Thomas Bracken was born in Clonee, County Meath, Ireland in 1843. An orphan by the age of nine, he was sent to Victoria, Australia, to his uncle, under whose care he became a proficient horseman and shearer. He became known for his poetry and, at age twenty-six, he sailed to Dunedin and was employed as a journalist.From his arrival in Dunedin he continued the verse writing he had begun in Australia, and he published prolifically in New Zealand and Australia, using the pseudonym 'Paddy Murphy' as well as his own name.
Bracken also entered politics for a short period. In 1881 he won the seat of Dunedin Central, and was in Parliament for three years. His first speech was a forceful criticism of the native minister. Later he attacked the government's dealings with the Parihaka Maori, the detention of Te Whiti and Tohu, and what he saw as a dishonourable breaching of the commitments of the Treaty of Waitangi.
Full essay in DNZB
History of God Defend New Zealand
Bracken's single most important achievement was his poem God Defend New ZealandOn 1 July 1876 the New Zealand Saturday Advertiser published the five stanzas under the title 'National hymn', and announced a competition to compose an orchestral score for the poem for a prize of 10 guineas. The 12 entries were judged by a panel of three German musicians in Melbourne, Zelman, Seide and Zeplin, who unanimously chose the score written over the pseudonym 'Orpheus' by John Joseph Woods.
In 1877 Bracken relinquished the copyright of the poem to Woods, who undertook the publishing and promotion of an edition of the work. A Maori translation by T. H. Smith, recently retired judge of the Native Land Court, was supplied to Woods by Sir George Grey, and in 1878 it was printed in London.
In 1938 The National Centennial Council recommended that the government adopt 'God Defend New Zealand' as the national hymn, and in 1940 the government purchased the rights to Bracken's words and Woods's music. The bilingual hymn was given equal status with 'God save the Queen' as a national anthem in 1979. FULL DETAILS
John Joseph Woods
Woods was born in Tasmania in 1851, the son of a soldier. He was very gifted musically: he could play twelve instruments, but mostly he played the piano and violin. In 1876 he was school-teaching at the Roman Catholic school in the gold-mining town of Lawrence in Otago.
The Advertiser announcing the competition had reached him at 9 pm: "I immediately felt like one inspired," he recalled later. He started straight away and stayed up late until he had finished the score.
It is this spark of inspiration by a man of middle-class talents that gave the score of God Defend New Zealand its enduring character.
John Joseph Woods was a man of his community: not only was he was an all-round sportsman, an office-holder in Lawrence's clubs and societies, and choirmaster for the local Catholic Church, but he was also the county clerk for Tuapeka County for 55 years!
Thanks
- To staff of the National Library, Wanganui District Library, and the Alexander Turnbull Library for finding old music scores for me.
- To Mereana Moore, Arama Rolton and Hinemoana Baker for their wise comments.
- To flag enthusiast Sam Lockton, who showed me where to find the Tapapa flag on the internet.
- To staff of the Whanganui Regional Museum for pointing me towards Judith Binney's book.
- To Colin Andrews and Judith Binney for their research, and for checking the accuracy of the Triple Star section.
- To my talented neighbour, Sonya Wilson who played the different scores of God Defend New Zealand for me, and told me about the art of choral arrangements.
- And to the operators of the Google search engine, who have made it so easy to locate all this information.
John Archer
Page published Feb 2002, revised April 2002, revised Jan 2020