Matariki comes alive at Māngere Mountain

Māngere Mountain will come alive this Matariki as locals join in a hands-on day of kai, culture, and community connection. The celebration includes a live hāngī, kapa haka, storytelling, traditional Māori games, and workshops that honour the past while inspiring the future.

The Tūpuna Maunga Authority, supported by the Māngere-Ōtāhuhu Local Board, will host the final event of the inaugural Love Your Maunga hāngī fundraiser series.

The celebration will mark the closing of the 2024/2025 season on Saturday, 28 June at the award-winning Whānau Ātea, located at the Māngere Mountain Education Centre. Due to wet weather, the event has been moved indoors rather than at the base of Te Pane o Mataoho.

Attendees can participate in weaving, mau rākau (traditional Māoei weapon training), bilingual storytime, kapa haka, and traditional games like kī-o-rahi. A live hāngī demonstration will give the community a rare opportunity to learn about Māori cooking.

Māngere-Ōtāhuhu Local Board chair Tauanuʻu Nick Bakulich says the event reflects the board’s partnership with the Māngere Mountain Education Centre and its commitment to cultural learning and connection.

“It’s a really good way of showcasing the hāngī pit, which is a real big feature of Māngere Mountain,” he says. “For those who haven't seen hāngī being put down or come straight out of the pit, this is a great opportunity for learning and education.”

He says interest in traditional Māori cooking is growing. “What better example than hāngī? We have held a number of these events both this year and last year, and they have all been very successful.”

Bakulich says food, whānau, and remembrance are central to Matariki. “That is one of the main elements of Matariki, people coming together through food. This event fits perfectly with that, and it is also a way of remembering those who have died in the last 12 months.”

Paul Majurey, the chair of the Tūpuna Maunga Authority, agrees. “Matariki is an important time of the year. It is a time of reflection and remembrance. These ancestral places hold deep cultural history and connection.

“It is encouraging to see the growth of this kaupapa, with increasing support from local partners such as the Māngere-Ōtāhuhu Local Board and Māngere Mountain Education Centre.”

The programme also includes kapa haka, workshops in raranga, kēmu Māori, martial arts and information stalls run by Auckland Libraries, Healthy Waters, and E Tū Rākau.

The free event runs from 10am to 3pm on Saturday, 28 June. For more details, visit here.

This story has been updated to reflect a change in venue. Due to wet weather, the event will now take place at the Māngere Mountain Education Centre.*

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.