NZ Scholarship Te Ao Haka cheat sheet

Performance components that can be analysed separately: te reo Māori (diction, clarity, correct stress), te reo o te tinana (body language, stance, gesture), te reo o te kanohi (facial expression, pukana, wheterō), and te reo o te wairua (spiritual or emotional register).

Structural units of a haka: whakamutunga or whakawātea (opening), ngā kupu (verse lines), te wāhi tū (stance or position), te hī (the rise or climax), and te whakamutunga (ending). Naming these units lets an analysis point to a specific moment rather than a general impression.

Waiata-ā-ringa, haka, poi, moteatea, pātere, and waiata tawhito are distinct genres. A judgement about performance quality must use the conventions of the genre being performed, not a single standard applied to all.

Composition decisions to analyse: the kaupapa (theme or purpose), the take (the reason or occasion), the structure of verses, the choice of rangi or tune, and the tempo. A strong analysis links each decision to the effect it creates for the audience.

A haka composed for a specific occasion carries a take. Identifying the occasion and the audience is a precondition for interpreting tone, because the same words can be celebratory, mourning, or challenging depending on context.

Kaitātaki (leaders) carry the calls and transitions; the rōpū (group) answers them. Analysing leadership and response is a legitimate performance criterion, separate from individual vocal quality.

Māori performance conventions include te haka taparahi (no weapon, foot-stamping, strong body percussion), te haka peruperu (performed with weapons, leaping), te waiata-ā-ringa (action song, often with poi or rākau), and te whakaaraara (alert or dawn call).

Critical reflection should address both the intended meaning and the received effect, and should distinguish observation (what was seen or heard) from interpretation (what it may mean) and from judgement (how well it worked).

Whakapapa is a genealogical framework connecting people to ancestors, to the land, and to the natural world. It is a system of relationships and obligations, not only a list of names.

Kōrero tuku iho is inherited knowledge passed down. The category includes pūrākau (stories or narratives), whakataukī (proverbs), pepeha (tribal identifiers), and waiata that carry history.

Pepeha elements typically include maunga, awa, moana, marae, waka, iwi, hapū, and tūpuna. A pepeha is a statement of identity and belonging, so accuracy of names matters.

Different iwi hold different versions of the same narrative. Variation is not automatically error; attribution to the source (which iwi, which hapū, which kaumātua) is the correct analytical response.

Whakataukī are compressed arguments and values. Interpreting one requires identifying the literal image, the underlying principle, and the situation in which it would be cited.

Creation narratives and migration traditions serve different functions: creation traditions establish relationships between atua and the world; migration traditions establish claims to land and place. Do not collapse one into the other.

When citing traditional narrative in an answer, name the source of the version being used and note any known differences with other versions, rather than presenting one account as universal.

Place names and features in the landscape often encode narrative events. Analysing a kōrero tuku iho in relation to the landscape it names is a recognised approach.

Poetic devices to name and analyse: kupu whakarite (simile or metaphor), whakataukī (proverb), whakatauākī (a saying attributed to a named person), and te kīwaha (colloquial idiom).

Sound devices: te ori (rhythm), te ha o te kupu (stress and emphasis), alliteration, and assonance. Repetition (tāruarua) of a line builds intensity and is a deliberate structure, not padding.

Macrons (tohutō) mark vowel length and change meaning: kākā (parrot) versus kaka (stem), tāne (male) versus tane (to be born). Misplaced macrons alter meaning and are a genuine error.

The digraphs ng and wh each represent a single phoneme. In performance, correct treatment of ng and wh is part of diction quality.

Verb particles and tense markers matter for interpretation of a line: e … ana marks present or ongoing action; i marks past; ka marks sequential or narrative action; kua marks completed action; e … ai marks future.

Singular and plural pronouns distinguish person and number: au or ahau (I), koe (you), ia (he or she), māua and tāua (we two, exclusive and inclusive), tātou and mātou (we, inclusive and exclusive). Choosing inclusive or exclusive changes the relationship asserted.

Passive endings (-tia, -hia, -ngia, -a, -ria) shift emphasis from actor to action. A composer may choose passive forms to foreground the deed rather than the doer.

Kupu whakarite typically use the particles 'me te' or 'kei te' with a comparison; identifying the shared quality between tenor and vehicle is the core of the analysis.

Tikanga is a body of customary rules and practices derived from precedent rather than fixed statute, so it varies between marae and iwi. An answer should state whose tikanga it is describing.

Core values to apply in analysis: mana (prestige and authority), tapu (restriction or sacredness), noa (the ordinary state that lifts tapu), utu (reciprocity), whanaungatanga (relationship), manaakitanga (care and hospitality), and kaitiakitanga (guardianship).

Pōwhiri sequence: karanga, whakaeke, whaikōrero, waiata tautoko, koha, hongi or harirū, and hākari. Each stage has its own protocol, and speakers are governed by rules such as who may speak and in what order.

Marae ātea, wharenui, and wharekai carry distinct functions. Behaviour expectations (shoes off, where to sit, who sits where) follow from the function of each space.

Tapu and noa operate as a pair: an event or object that is tapu is returned to noa by a specific act. Explaining the act, not only the state, demonstrates understanding.

Manaakitanga and kaitiakitanga are obligations, not optional courtesies. In analysis, they can be used to evaluate whether an action or composition upholds the relationship it invokes.

Critical reflection on a performance should account for the position of the performer and the audience, including whether the material belongs to the performer's whakapapa or has been shared with permission.

The Treaty of Waitangi / Te Tiriti o Waitangi is relevant context for contemporary performance and for debates about ownership of mātauranga Māori; cite the article and the language version being discussed.