DAVID UNWIN/Stuff
Rangitāne representative Wiremu Kingi Te Awe Awe, centre, blesses the pou that have returned to Te Marae o Hine.
Māori guardians have returned to the central city after taking a break from keeping watch. Erected on the side of the Palmerston North City Council facing Te Marae o Hine/The Square, three pou were welcomed back, and two for the first time, to the heart of the city on Wednesday afternoon. Almost 100 people attended the event, that was monitored due to alert level 2 Covid restrictions, to bless the pou, rededicate the kaupapa, or principles, of Te Marae o Hine and solidify the strong relationship between iwi Rangitāne, Raukawa and the council.
WARWICK SMITH/STUFF
Rangitāne descendants Wiremu Kingi Te Awe Awe, Peter Te Rangi and Warren Warbrick on what Te Motu o Poutoa means to Rangitāne.
Everyone knows Pork Chop Hill, it’s as Palmy as you can get, with a trip up to its peak almost a rite of passage for locals. But not so many are aware of its significance to Māori – its 500-year history as a fortified pā, named after Poutoa, the Rangitāne chief who founded it for his people. Maxine Jacobs reports. Te Motu o Poutoa, the Island of Poutoa, is the most sacred yet almost forgotten pā in Palmerston North.
David Unwin/Stuff
Warren Warbrick and Wiremu Kingi Te Awe Awe of Rangitāne are pleased Papaioea is taking on Te Marae o Hine in everyday language.
A change of season has heralded a change in society as Palmerston North increasingly incorporates te reo into the heart of the city. With the blessing of Rangitāne,
Stuff began a campaign in spring to revitalise Te Marae o Hine in the hearts and minds of Papaioea s community, and as summer moves into full swing the fruit of the work is shining through. The Māori name for The Square, Te Marae o Hine, was founded on a kaupapa (principle) of community and peace between Māori and Pākehā in Papaioea and the surrounding rohe (area) in 1878. However, that was soon forgotten by mainstream society.