NZ Folk Chant * Tui-tui-tuia

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The constant call of the bush wren or Matuhi to its mate, "Tui, tui, tuituia,"
has been a call to unity since the start of the Kingite movement in the 1880s,
Often used when calling visitors onto a marae. There are a number of variants.

TE TANGI A TE MATUI

traditional

Kia whakarongo ake au Ki te tangi a te manu nei a te Matui¹ Tui-i-i, tui-i-i, tuituia - Tuia i runga Tuia raro Tuia i waho Tuia i roto Tuia i te here tangata Ka rongo te po Ka ronga te ao. Tuia i te muka tangata I takea mai i Hawaiki-Nui I Hawaiki-Roa, i Hawaiki-Pāmamao Oti rā me ērā atu ano Hawaiki Te hono a wairua Whakaputa ki Te Whaiao Ki Te Ao Mārama. Tihe mauri ora!	My attention is drawn to the cry of the bird nearby, to the bush wren Calling "Bind, join, be united as one" May it be woven above, Enmeshed below, Entwined outside. and within our very beings, Interlaced by threads of human love May there be peace at night (in death) and peace by day. (in our lives) Intertwined with the cords of humankind Originating from the great homeland From the far homeland, From the remote homeland And from all other ancestral lands Merging with the spirits there Then coming out into the Light Out into the World of Consciousness. The living spirit is within us!
1. Matui; Matuhi or Bush Wren. This used to be a very common little insect-eating ground bird. The pairs of birds constantly kept in contact by calling to each other. Their calls sounded like clockwork toys being wound up. By about 1960, they had all been killed by stoats and feral cats.

WHAKARONGO AKE AU by John Tapiata

Whakarongo rā Whakarongo ake au Ki te tangi a te manu E rere runga rawa e. "Tui, tui, tui, tuia Tuia i runga Tuia i raro Tuia i roto Tuia i waho Tui, tui, tuia Kia rongo te ao Kia rongo te pö Tui, tui, tuia." Whakarongo rā...		I listen there To the sound up there To the cry of the bird Flying really high above me. "Join, link, bind together Bind from above Bind from below Bind from within Bind from outside Join, link, bind together During the day During the night Join, link, bind together." I listen there...

TUIA by Ariana Taiko

Ariana is from Onuku marae near Akaroa in Canterbury, and this ethereal song uses a Kai Tahu variant of Tui-tuia.

Tuia, Tuia, Tuia, Tui-tui-tuia. Whakaroko mai, Whakaroko² Whakaroko mai, Whakaroko x 2 Tuia i ruka³, tuia i raro, tuia i roto, tuia i waho Te hōkā⁴ mate, te hōkā mate. Te hōkā ora, te hoka ora. Tihei mauri ora!		Be bound together, together, together Bound-bound together Listen here, listen, Listen here, listen, Be bound together above and below Be bound together inside and out Our local kokako is dead, our kokako is dead Our kokako lives,our kokako lives. Sneeze the source of life!
2. Whakaroko; South Island variant of whakarongo. 3. Ruka; South Island variant of runga. 4. Hōkā; South Island kōkako, a forest bird thought to be extinct, but last seen in 2007. Also known as the orange-wattled crow. South Island kokako (rear), North Island kokako (front)

HE POWHIRI

A Maori Welcome

Kia hiwa ra! Kia hiwa ra!
Kia hiwa ra i tenei tuku!
Kia hiwa ra i tera tuku!
Kia hiwa ra! Kia hiwa ra!

E nga waka. E nga hau e wha.
E nga mana. E nga iwi.
E nga manu korero o runga i nga marae

Whakarongo! Whakarongo! Whakarongo!
Ki te tangi a te manu e karanga nei
"Tui, tui, tuituia!"
Tuia i runga,
tuia i raro,
tuia i roto
Tuia i waho,
tuia i te here tangata.
Ka rongo te po, ka rongo te ao.

Tuia i te kawai tangata
I heke mai i Hawaiki Nui
I Hawaiki Roa
i Hawaiki Pamamao
I hono ki te wairua,
Ki te whai ao,
Ki te Ao Marama.
Tihei Mauriora!

E nga iwi o te ao katoa
Haere mai, haere mai, haere mai.

Haere mai ki te whenua o Aotearoa
Haere mai ki te ao Maori.

Ko tenei te mihi atu
Ki a koutou katoa o te ao.
Ko tenei te mihi aroha ki a koutou.

Be alert! Be watchful!
Be alert on this rampart!
Be alert on that rampart!
Be watchful! Be alert!

To the canoes! To the four winds!
To the great ones! To the tribes!
To the talking bird orators of the marae!

Listen! Listen! Listen!
Listen to the cry of the bird calling
"Unite, unite, be one!"
Unite above,
unite below,
unite within,
Unite without,
unite in the bonds of mankind.
May there be peace by night, peace by day.

Unite by way of the descent lines
From the great homeland
From the long homeland
From the homeland far away
Joined to the spirit,
To the daylight,
To the world of light.
Tihei Mauriora!

To the peoples of the whole world
Welcome, welcome, welcome.

Welcome to New Zealand
Welcome to the world of the Maori.

This is my greeting
To all the peoples of the world.
This is my greeting of love to you all.

PAURA POTANGAROA'S WARNING

   March 18, 1881.
      A call for unity - the Maori king was signing a peace treaty with
   the British colonists, but Parihaka was invaded 8 months later.

"Kaore hoki⁵ e taku manukanuka,
ki aku tini mahara,
e pupuke ake nei i roto i te Hinengaro,
e kore e taea te pehi iho ki roto ra,
me panui atu kia rongo mai
te tini, te mano,
ki te rau e pae nei.
E hoa ma e, katahi ano au,
a Tamairangi,⁶
ka akoako ake ki te tito,
ki te hangahanga rau e,

How great is my worry,
adding to my many anxieties
about what is rising up here in my mind
it can't be suppressed,
it must be communicated
to many, to thousands,
to the bounds of the horizon.
O friends, not long ago
I was trained by Tamairangi,
to spot falsehoods,
by the method of comparing them.

Ka pere taku pere ki te Tai Rawhiti,
ki a Hinematioro,⁷ e kui e,
Tenei tonu au ki te kimikimi ake,
kei te wawae ake i roto
i te ūranga urua,⁸
kia ki te au i to hihi o te ra
kia pa mai te mahanatanga ki taku kiri,
kia kohakoha taku noho
kia tae te mahana ki te tau o toku ake,
ka papa piritia, ka haku turitia
i te awhitanga a to mataotao.
Ka pere taku pere
ki te tihi o Hikurangi⁹,
E mara ma e, kia huri mai te taringa
ki te whakarongo ki te tangi a te Matuhi,
A tangi nei, tui, tuia, tuituia

I will fling my dart towards the East Coast,
towards Hinemaioro, the renowned old lady
Here I'll keep on checking the tall stories
So as to reach the dead centre
of the chosen landing place,⁸
which to me is like the sun's rays
bringing warmth to my skin
so that when I vacate my place here
the warmth will reach my friends
sticking flat, making you sweat
and curing your coldness.
Yes, I will fling my dart
at the summit of Hikurangi⁹
Sir, let your ear turn
and listen to Bush Wren's cry,
to this cry, "Unite, bond together."

"E, ka pere taku pere ki te Tai Tokerau,
ki te Tiriti o Waitangi,¹¹
E mara ma e, kia huri mai te taringa
ki te whakarongo ki te tangi a te Matuhi,
A tangi nei, "Tui, tuia, tuituia"

"E, ka pere taku pere
kl te tihi o Taranaki,
e Whiti ma e,¹²
tenei ano au kei te whakahou
i te ohaki a te tangata
kua mate ki te po.¹³
E hoa ma e, kia huri mai te taringa
ki te whakarongo ki te tangi a te Matuhi,
e tangi nei tui, tuia, taituia.

"E, ka pere taku pere
ki te nuku o te whenua
ki titia taka pere ki te tihi o Tongariro,
kia Hinana ki uta, kia Hinana ki tai,¹⁴
E hoa ma e,
kati hoki ra te Hinana ki tai ra,
Hinana iho ki uta ra.
Tirohia iho nga manu mohio e toru,¹⁵
e korero nei i runga i a Aotearoa,
e tangi nei hoki te Matuhi t
"Tui, tua, tuituia"

"E, ka pere taka pere,
ka kau i te tuahiwi o Raukawa,
e ka titia, taku pere
ki te tihi o Tapuaenuku,¹⁶
kia Taiaroa,¹⁷
kia Tuhawaiki,¹⁸
kia Tamaiharoa,¹⁹
e tama ma kia huri mai te taringa
ki te whakarongo ki te tangi a te Matuhi,
e tangi nei, tui, tuia, tuituia.

"E rauna noa te Waipounamu,²⁰
te wahi i takoto ai
te kuru-auhunga,
te kuru-tongare rewa,
te tiki pounamu,
te taramea,²¹
te tikumu,
te rau o titapu,
nga taonga whakapaipai o mua.

Nga tohu rangatira o te iwi Maori,
titia ki runga te upoko o
o te piki-kotuku,
te piki-huia;
te raukura,
te tikumu,
whakaheitia ki te taringa,
te pohoi toroa.²²

Te kuru-ahunga,
te kuru-tongarerewa,
heia ki te kaki
te hei taramea,
te tiki Pounamu, hei aha,
hei whakapaipai ra,
hei whakata kunekune.

Kia pai ai, kia huro ai,
kia mate mai ai
nga tamahine karea
roto o Aotearoa.

E tangi mai nei hoki te Matuhi
"Tui, tuia, tuituia"
e whakakoia nei hoki te Huia
"Koia, koia"
e tangi mai nei hoki te Huia,
"Hui, huihuia,"
e tangi mai ana te Pipi-Wharauroa,
whiti, whiti,
whitiwhiti ora,
na mo nga tau ohi nawa."

Then I'll fling my dart towards the North,
towards the Treaty of Waitangi,¹¹
Sir, let your ear turn
to listen to Bush Wren's cry,
to this cry, "Unite, bond together"

Next, I'll fling my dart
towards the summit of Taranaki
to Whiti and his followers¹²
I am still revising
the final speech of that body
which is dying in the night.¹³
My friends, let your ear turn
to listen to Bush Wren's cry,
to this cry, "Unite, bond together."

I will fling my dart
towards the remote part of the country
to stick my dart onto the summit of Tongariro
in order to "Boldly explore the land and sea"¹⁴
Oh, friends,
blocked off now is our roving on the seas
and soon, our access to the hinterlands.
The three wise birds will soon be watched¹⁵
talking here on New Zealand
and again the Bush Wren cries
"Unite, bond together."

"Now, fly my dart,
swim from the shallows of Cook Strait
and stick, oh my clever dart,
on the top of the Kaikoura ranges,¹⁶
on the Otago Peninsula,¹⁷
at Timaru,¹⁸
and the McKenzie country¹⁹
and you lads there, you turn your ears
to listen to the cry of the Bush Wren,
to this cry, "Unite, bond together."

"Wander freely around the South Island²⁰
a bit futher to where there is
an abundance of pale green jade
large quantities of semi-transparent jade
the tiki-grade dark green jade
the scent-providing spear grass²¹
the mountain daisy
lots of kakapo chicks
the beautiful treasures of the old days.

The traditional symbols of the Maori people
stuck on the head of
the devotee of the white heron
and the devotee of the huia;
the plume of feathers
the mountain daisy,
or the albatross-feather ornament
to be attached to the ear.²²

The far south is the mother-lode of
the most precious things
hung around the neck;
the sachet of scent
the greenstone tiki etc, hanging there
hanging so beautifully
resting plumply.

Such good times, so happy
will soon be coming to an end
for our lovely young women
all around Aotearoa.

And once again the Bush Wren cries
"Unite, bond together."
while the Huia bird agrees
"Indeed, indeed!"
and the Huia also cries out,
"Gather to discuss problems"
while the shining cuckoo cries out
"Beware, beware;
make changes in your lives,
to protect your long-term development."

⁵ Kaore hoki - does not mean "No again" It is an exclaimation meaning "How great is...!"
Many moteatea begin with the words Kaore hoki.. or Kaore te.. to intensify the composer's emotions.

⁶ Tamairangi lived at Porirua in the 1820s and is said to have been as great a chieftainess as Hinematioro of Tolaga Bay. When travelling, she was never allowed to walk, she had male attendants who carried her. When she appeared before the tribe on public occasions, she was dressed in the linest mats, with plumes of albatross feathers in her hair, and a long and richly carved taiaha in her hand. When Ngati Toa invaded her district and killed many of her people, she escaped to the South Island, where she was killed by Ngai Tahu.

¹² Kua mate ki te po - Paora could see that Te Whiti's community was doomed. Only eight months later, a force of almost 1600 Armed Constabulary and volunteers invaded Parihaka.

¹³"Hinana ki uta! Hinana ki tai" "Fiercely search the land and sea" is the name of an elaborately carved storehouse built by Iwikau Te Heuheu to commemorate a hui held at Pūkawa (near Turangi) in November 1856 at which the Māori kingship was offered to Te Heuheu. He refused it.

¹⁵ Nga manu mohio e toru - I'm not sure what the three wise birds are??? The two wise birds of legend were a pair of saddlebacks, Mumuhau and Takareto, and this species of bird still serves Maori at Cuvier Island as barometers. The peculiar note of one is a sign of good weather, whilst the shrill cry of the other warns of a coming storm.

¹¹ Te Tiriti o Waitangi - at Waitangi in 1840, after 20 years of ruinous inter-tribal musket wars, Maori signed sovereignty of their country over to Britain, in return for guarantees about their land and other possessions. But a giant land grab then took place when British capitalists and venal officials ignored this treaty for the next 120 years.

²² Te pohoi toroa - an ear ornament using down from a baby albatross -

Song List - Other Maori songs - Home

Published on Folksong.org.nz in June 2011, revised October 2017