Kapa haka provides opportunities for all ākonga to engage in Māori culture, language and traditional practice. Intrinsic to kapa haka are culture, language and identity.
The Kavanagh College kapa haka group is a young group with the potential to grow and develop. We currently have both experienced kaiako, senior students, past students and the occasional guest tutor teaching our group. Some of the events we have taken part in recently include Ngā Manu Kōrero, Matariki, Te Wā Tuku Reo Māori (the Māori Language moment), and Te Wiki o te Reo Māori (Māori Language Week). And, we always look forward to performing at Polyfest.
We aim to promote whakawhānaungatanga, mahitahi (working together), and discipline as well as having fun.
He Whetū Tīrama
(The Kavanagh College haka, composed by Manu Sinclair in 1996)
Ko wai rā?
Ko wai rā
Ko wai rā?
Ko wai rā
Nei rā mātou Te whetu tīrama i te puke
– E kanapanapa ana
Hei ramaroa mō te iwi whānui e
Ko Ōtepoti
Te kāinga
Ko Ōtākou
Te Rohe whakaruruhau – i ngā uri – whakatupu
– i te Waipounamu e
Tū mai rā ngā tauira
O te kura (o) Kawana
Whakamanahia
Hi
ngā wawata
Hi
o ngā mātua tupuna
Hi, Hi, Ha
Ko te pae tawhiti
Whāia kia tata
Ko te pae tata
Whakamaua, kia mau ki ngā akoranga,
ki ngā tikanga tawhito kawea, te MANA,
te ihi, te wehi o ngā rangatira o Ōtākou e
A HI!
Who are those (over there)?
Who are those (over there)?
This is us, the glimmering stars on the hill
Gleaming
As a light for our people/community
Dunedin
Is the home
Ōtākou
The place that shelters us, the descendants –
growing up/flourishing – in the South Island
Stand tall students
of Kavanagh College
Give mana to
the dreams
of the ancestors/elders
A distant horizon
Pursue this (so it becomes achievable)
Becomes a near horizon
Fix your attention to holding on to the teachings,
and traditional practices that carry the mana,
the ihi, the wehi of the esteemed leaders of Ōtākou
