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Tērā tētehi wahine rangatira nō Te Arawa ko Kirimatao Te Tautahi.
Nō te tau kotahi mano, e waru rau, e wha tekau mā toru i whānau mai i te takere waka nei. Ko Te Taotahi rāua ko Nenekura ōna mātua. E kōrerongia tonungia āna tēnei rangatira e te marea o Ngai Te Arawa.
He rangatira a Kirimatao ki te tito waiata he rangatira mātauranga, ā, he wahine kawe hoki i ngā taonga katoa a ōna kaumātua.Atu i āna kawenga mahi whakangāhau he wahine hāpai akerautangi. Nō te tau kotahi mano, e waru rau, e whitu tekau e noho wehi ana ngā rangatira o te ahi nō Māui i a Te Kooti Te Rikirangi. Kai te pinaki o Tihi o Tonga a Kirimatao me ōna rangatira e hetiheti, e tukituki whenua ana, ka puta a Te Kooti rātau ko ōna tangata i te nehenehe.
Tū totara ana a Kirimatao me tana kō ki reira ia whakatumatuma ai. Ina rawa te kaha o te tū a tēnei wahine, ka tataku kau te haeretanga a Te Kooti mā ki a ia otīā ki a rātau tahi tēnei ohu wahine. Ka noho herehere a Kirimatao. Ka roa, ka iti pea rātau e noho herehere ana, ka tere te kupu kōrero ki ngā toa o Te Arawa whaihoki ki a Kapene Mea.
Ka rewa te tauā ka anga atu ki te pūtake o Tihi o Tonga, rokohanga te ope tauā nei e Te Kooti e tere mai nā i te mānia o Arikikapakapa, katahi ka matika ake te ohu wahine, ko Kirimatao tō rātau amokura, ka motu i te koromāhanga, e oma haere ana ngā herehere kai te pūhia rātau e ngā rangatira a Te Kooti, kāore tetehi ō ā rātau mata i pā ki te tinana o ngā wahine rangatira nei. Ka ora rātau.
He ahakoa tēnei wāhanga o te hītoria o Te Waiariki nā wai rā ka tau te puehu, ka whakamoea e ngā rangatira ā rātau pū me ngā rākau o te riri. A Kirimatao he kaha nōnā ki te whakamanuwhiri waewae tapu ki ngā whenua o Te Arawa pēnei i a te Tiuka me tōna rangatira o Cornwall. Ki te ūpoko o te ngohi a Kirimatao tū ngangahū kau ana me tana taiaha.
Ka pakaru katoa te whenua i te kaha o te haka pōwhiri, ko Kirimatao te manu ngangahu. Nā wai ka whakamanuwhiringia e ia enei Ariki ki tōna pā taunaha ki roto o Ōhinemutu.Nō te tau kotahi mano, e iwa rau mā tahi tēnei huinga. Nō te tau kotahi mano, e iwa rau mā iwa i haere ai te ope o Te Arawa ki Amerika. Ki tāwāhi e mea ana ngā kaumātua ko te take o taua haere he whakangahau, he haka, he poi, he mahi waiata hoki.
Ko te roa o tēnei ope e ngaro ana he kotahi tekau mā tahi marama. Kāre kau he nama nā te Amerikana ngā nama katoa o tēnei haere. Ka roa a Kirimatao rātau ko ōna whānaunga e noho atu nā ki Amerika ki te poho o te Hippodrome rātau waiata ai.
Hāunga ngā waiata me ngā whakangahau he wahine mōhio ki ngā tikanga torangapū i Hawaiki Tahutahu nei kua pau i a ia te rua tekau o ngā tau e pōti ana, i Amerika nā ka heke a Kirimatao mā ki te tautoko i ngā wāhine e mahi ana i ngā wheketere ki te porotēhi ki ngā tikanga rorirori o taua wā.
Nō te tau kotahi mano e iwa rau kotahi tekau mā toru mate ai tēnei wahine rangatira. Ko te kaha ki te waiata me te tito waiata kai te ora tonu i ōna uri.
Kirimatao Te Tautahi was another prominent woman from Te Arawa’s past.
Kirimatao was born in 1843 and passed away in the year 1913. She was the daughter of Te Taotahi and Nenekura. Kirimatao was renowned not only for her singing prowess but also for her skilful composition of waiata.
She was a past master of all disciplines of Māori performing arts. In the year 1870, in the later periods of the New Zealand land wars, Rotorua was attacked by Te Kooti and his followers. Upon the slopes of Tihi o Tonga, Kirimatao and her relations were tending the gardens when Te Kooti and his men emerged from the bush. Armed only with her long digging implement, Kirimatao stood defiantly as the men of Te Kooti approached them. It wasn’t long before all present were rounded up and deemed captives of Te Kooti.
News quickly moved down the slopes to the township of Rotorua, eventually finding its way to the warriors of Te Arawa. Finally, a force led by Gilbert Mair was gathered to engage Te Kooti. As the Arawa warriors approached Te Kooti, Kirimatao and her relations escaped captivity. Under heavy fire, they ran from the campsite and were not pursued.
When the turbulent years of The New Zealand land wars simmered, Kirimatao entertained people of importance. In 1901, she was prominent during the reception of the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall; draped in traditional wear brandishing a taiaha, she joined her people in welcoming the royal family to Rotorua.
Eventually, over the successive days, the royal couple had the privilege of Kirimatao’s company as she escorted them throughout her home village of Ohinemutu. 1909 was an exceptional year for Kirimatao and her relations as 40 members departed New Zealand and travelled to America to perform at the prestigious Hippodrome. The trip was a major one; all expenses were paid, and the group were away from their homeland for nearly 11 months.
Apart from sharing the culture of home with those interested in Māori culture, when the Te Arawa contingent was not performing, Kirimatao was often found supporting movements that strengthened women’s rights. Kirimatao was aware of the power of voting as she had been an avid voter in New Zealand.
These are just small snippets into the life of this remarkable wahine rangatira, who sadly passed away in 1913.
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