Inā noa ake te hōhonu o te kupu whānau. He taha kikokiko, hinengaro, wairua hoki, ā, e ahu mai ana i te whakapapa. He tini ngā āhuatanga o tēnei mea te whānau e takea mai ana i te toi huarewa o te iwi Māori. Mā roto hoki i te whānau whai take anō ai ngā taonga tuku iho a ngā tīpuna ki roto i tēnei ao hurihuri.
Tae anō ai te tawharau o te whānau ki te hunga whāngai me te hunga kua mate. Tērā ngā mahi mā te tangata, he mahi anō hoki mā te whānau whānui. Ka whānui hoki te āhua o te whānau mai i tōu ake, ki te whānuitanga rōpūkē atu. Heoi ko ngā āhuatanga nui e noho motuhake ai ia i ngā rōpū hapori noa ko te whakapapa, te wairuatanga me ōna hononga ā-hapū, ā-iwi hoki.
Ki tā te titiro atu a ngā tohunga whaipara tangata ki ngā whānau Māori o te rautau 1700:
I te wā o te toitūtanga whānau Māori e whirinaki tonu ai te Māori ki te oranga taiao, e whakapau kaha ana hoki ia kia ora ai tōna whānau. Ki tā te tohunga whaipara tangata a Joan Metge ko ngā whānau Māori o te rautau 1700 me te 1800 he tuturu (‘classic’ ). I tēnei mano tau kei te mau tonu ētahi ki te noho tahi o ngā reanga e toru o te whānau, ahakoa kore haere ana. Kua kore haere te noho papa kāinga a ētahi whānau, ā, ko te nuinga o ngā uri kua marara i te motu me te ao. Ināianei me kimi mahi ngā pakeke e whai moni ai ki te hoko parāoa me te pata.
I ngā tau o te 2000, ka noho tāpiri tonungā whānau mā te ipurangi me ngā pae tukutuku hapori. Ko Naumaiplace.com tērā tētahi ingoa arorua ko ‘know my place’ kē te aro Pākehā o te kupu. Ko te hunga toro mai i tēnei ipurangi ka uia he aha te take kia ‘Naumaiplace’? ko te whakautu, mō te Whānau Ora.
I tua atu i te whānau ā-whakapapa nei, arā anō ētahi momo whānau ka kotahi mai i runga i te whakaaro whakakotahi. Ka karangatia anō e Metge ēnei momo whānau e rua he whānau ā-whakapapa tētahi, he whānau ā-Kaupapa tētahi.1
He tini ngā pūtakenga o te kupu whānau, arā, ko tētahi ko te whakawhānau tamariki. Arā kē anō te kōrero, ‘ka whānau mai he whakaaro’. He Kōrero tērā mō te tokonga ake o te whakaaro mō tētahi mahinga toi whakairo rānei, waiata rānei, puka rānei.
Hei kupu whakarite hoki te kupu whānau mō ētahi hoa tata hei auaha i te kotahitanga. Ina koa ko Te Whānau a Waipareira tērā tētahi rōpū ā-iwi. Ko tētahi tauira anō ko ngā ‘rūma whānau’ o roto hohipera e whakakao ana i ngā tāngata e torotoro ana i ō rātou whanaunga. Kei ētahi kura hoki he akomanga reo e kīa ana ’akomanga whānau reo’ hei ako i te reo Māori. Nā ēnei momo whakamahinga i te kupu whānau nei ka rerekē haere ngā tikanga ake o te kupu nei.
Ka tīmata mai te whānau i te tangata. He māmā, he uaua anō hoki te hononga o te tangata ki tōna whānau. He mōtika tō ia tangata o te whānau, engari nō te whānau te tangata, ā, he here tikanga hoki o te tangata ki tōna whānau. Ka ākina te tangata kia tū tangata tonu ki roto i te whānau, ā, ka mea hoki te whānau kia pakari kē tēnā me tēnā rātourātouo te whānau. Ka whakamahi te kaumātua o te Tai Rāwhiti a Merekaraka Ngarimu i te tauira o te haka Rūaumoko, arā, ka haka te tangata i tāna haka anō, engari ka whakapau kaha ki tōna rōpū. Ko te aronga o te kaiako he whakaputa kē mai i te ahurea o tēnā o tēnā. E whakaatu ana tēnei whakataukī i te toa o te tangata i roto i tana whānau.
Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi engari he toa takitini taku toa
Ko tō whānau ake anō tērā. Pēnā ka moe tētahi tokorua, he whānau ake ō rāua. Pēnā ka whānau i a rāua he tamariki ka kīia e rāua ko ‘tō māua whānau ake. Ka tae atu tēnei kōrero ki ngā hoa hoki. Mā te ako i roto i tō whānau ake ka rite te tangata mō ōna kawenga marae, hapū hoki. Ina te kōrero, ‘He tawheta haere koe i ngā waewae o ō maatua’.
He whanui anō te whānau. He wā kua kī te tangata ko tōna whānau ko māmā, pāpā, kuia, koroua, tungāne, tuahine rānei. He wa anō kua kōrero mō ōna tīpuna, matua kēkē, uri, irāmutu, mokopuna tae atu ki ō rātou whanaunga katoa. Mā te horopaki o te kaupapa me te tūuranga whānau o te tangata e whakatau he aha nei he kōrero māna. Kei runga anō hoki i te tangata e whiu ana i te pātai, te take i uia te pātai me ngā tāngata kei reira i taua wā.
Nā te tawhiti o te noho a ētahi he uaua te tae atu ki ngā tangihanga, ki ētahi atu hui whānau. Heoi kāre e rerekē tō turanga whānau. Ahakoa kei hea te huanga e noho ana, kare e rerekē te tuakiri o te whānau. Kua urutau te noho a ngā whānau ki roto o Aotearoa, ā, ka noho whare ngā whānau Māori i ēnei rā. Anō nei rātou ki ngā whānau noa, engari ka piripono tonu rātou ki ngā uara o te whānau. Ka noho taone te nuinga o te Māori. Ahakoa tēnei, ka whirinaki tonu ki o rātou iwi.
Ehara i te mea wewete ai ngā here whānau ahakoa tauwehe ētahi tāngata inā noa atu hoki mehe tamariki ā rāua. Arā ngā mātua ka kōrero anō nei kei te piri tonu ahakoa wehe rāua. Ki ngā kaumātua he whānau tonu ina rā ko ngā mātua hoki ēnā o ngā mokopuna. Kei ētahi ko te hoa rangatira o mua ka tanu tonu ki te urupā o te whānau.
I ngā wā kua tūpono mai he tāhae ki roto ki tētahi whānau, ā, mea rawa ake ka hua he whanaungatanga ki taua tāhae rā. Ka noho whānau tonu a ia ki ngā āhuatanga katoa, i tua atu i ngā kaupapa whakaheke whenua.
He mutunga kore te whānau; ina rā kei roto anō ko te hunga mate me te hunga ora. He hononga wairua anō hoki tērā ki ērā kua pahure. Ka noho tonu rātou ki waenganui i te whānau kanohi kitea. He whakapapa mutunga kore tō te whānau, arā ka tirohia tonutia ngā tauira ka whakarērea iho e rātou mā hei whai mā ngā mokopuna kei te piki mai. Mā rātou mā e whakatakoto te tuapapa mā te whānau hei whai.
I ētahi wā kua puta wairua mai ētahi whanaunga mate ki te hunga ora. Ka matakite ētahi i ō rātou tīpuna. Mā konei kua toka te taura here whānau.
Nō ngā moenga ki ētahi atu iwi ka whānui ake ngā taha o te whānau. Ka tukituki i ētahi wā ngā aronga e rua o te whānau ake me te whānau whānui – arā mō te whanaungatanga. Ko ētahi taupatupatu ko te whakaaro Pākehā me te whakaaro Māori mō tēnei mea te whānau, inā noa te whāiti o te whakaaro Pākehā, inā noa atu te whānui o te whakaaro Māori.
Kua kitea i ngā mahi rangahau te rerekē o ngā tikanga whakaaro ā-iwi. Ko ētahi tamariki ka whakatipuhia Māori mai, engari kāore e warewaretia ō rātou taha Pākehā. Ka heria hoki rātou ki ngā tangi, rāwhānau me te noho i o rātou kaumātua. Ko ētahi ka tipu Pākehā mai, ā, kāre e āhei ki te haere ki te marae.
Ko tētahi tuapapa o te whānau ko te whakapapa. Mā te whakapapa e honohonotia ai te tangata ki te tangata me tōna taiao.1
Mā te whakapapa ka whanake ai ngā hononga ki ō whanaunga, marae, maunga tapu, awa me te rangiātea hoki. Mā roto i ngā whakapapa tapaina ai ngā ingoa tamariki, me te whai tūrangawaewae. Nō te noho taone o te Māori ka korara te noho whānau, ā, kua wareware ētahi ko wai rātou. No konei ka papahoro ngā whare tangata whānau.
If one cannot understand his whakapapa or genealogical line he is left wanting. Without the knowledge he is not really armed for the future to make his associations with extended whānau into the notion of whanaungatanga. So to fit into the pattern and scroll work of whakaairo, whakapapa, whanaungatanga [and] whakawhanaungatanga. Everyone has this framework the structure of whānau, hapū and iwi. You owe it to your whānau your very being here, giving you an identity, embracing you into a culture. … It is a very deep concept.
Ki te kore te tangata e mōhio ki tōna whakapapa ka noho kūare tonu ia. Mei kore tēnei mātauranga kua kore ia e āhei te toro atu i ōna whānau i runga i te whanaungatanga. Otirā kia whai wāhi ia ki ngā whakaairo, ngā whakapapa, te whanaungatanga me te whakawhanaungatanga. Kei ia tangata tēnei mea te whānau, te hapū me te iwi. Otirā ko te wāhi tēnā ki tō whānau, nā rātou i whakamana i tō tuakiri, nā rātou i tauawhi i a koe ki roto ki tō Māoritanga…he huatau hōhonu tonu atu tēnei.2
He wāhanga te whānau nō te hapū me te iwi. E kī ana te Māori kāre e tū motuhake te whānau i te mea e honoa tonutia ana ki te hapū me te iwi – nā te whakapapa i pēnei ai. Ki tā rātou ka taka mai te whānau ki raro i te hapū me te iwi.
Nā te wehewehenga o ngā whānau, hapū, iwi, ka hua ko te iwi hei māngai ki ngā rōpū kāwanatanga, e māmā ake ai ngā mahi hanga ture.
He rerekē tēnei ki te tikanga ake o te Māori, arā, he hapū anō te whānau. Hei tauira ko Te Whānau a Ruataupare me Te Whānau a Umuariki ki roto o Ngāti Porou; he iwi a Te Whānau-a-Apanui.
Kei runga i te kāuru o te ao Māori ko te rangatira – heoi mā te mahi tonu te rangatira e rangatira tonu ai.
He tino whai hiranga te hononga o te tuakana–taina. He maha ngā whakatutukinga mā rāua. He mahi whakawhitiwhiti hoki tēnei, ā, mā tētahi tētahi anō e kōrero, e tautoko hoki rānei.
He wā kua tukuna te mauri kōrero ki te taina. Mā te taina anō e whakanui te tuakana, engari kia kaua te tuakana e whakaiti te taina. Hei tauira ka whakanui a Ngāti Porou i a Te Whānau-a-Apanui ko rātou ngā tuakana.
He mahi tō tēnā tō tēnā o te whānau i runga marae, i roto i te hapū, te iwi me te whānau. Ka whakahua tētahi kaumātua i te whai hiranga o ngā hononga – pēnā ka mārama koe ki ngā hononga kua māmā ake ngā mahi. Pēnā kāre e taea e tētahi hapū, whānau rānei tētahi mahi kua tukuna mā tētahi atu hapū taua mahi.
He mahi mā te whānau katoa. Hei tauira, mā ngā pakeke e whakaheke ngā whakapapa me ngā kōrero ki ngā mokopuna mā te whaikōrero i runga marae me te tohutohu i a rātou.
Mā tō pakeke anō e tohu he aha tō mahi. Kaumātua mai, hoa wahine mai, whaea mai, pāpaāmai, hoa tāne mai, koroua mai, tamariki mai, mokopuna mai. Ko te mahi a te kaumātua he whāngai mokopuna, he ārahi i te whānau, he ako i ngā pūkenga o te raranga, he whakaheke kōrero tuku iho hoki ki ngā reanga taiohi. Ko tētahi o ana mahi nui he whakakotahi i te whānau kia kore e tōtara wāhirua.
He tikanga Māori te whāngai. Ka kawea mai ana taua tamaiti ki roto i te whānau, ka whakatau rānei ngā kaumātua kia whāngai i taua tamaiti. E kīia ana ēnei kaiwhāngai he mātua whāngai, ā, ka kīia ngā wahine whāngai he kōkā whāngai. He marama, he tau rānei ka pahure e noho ai taua tamaiti ki taua whānau.
Kei roto i ngā whakanekeneke o te mahi whāngai e tūtohu i te āhua e whakapakekehia mai ai taua tamaiti. Pēnā ka hiahiatia taua tamaiti, he pai. Engari ki te whāngaihia taua tamaiti ki tētahi whānau e whai tamariki kē ana, he āhuatanga uaua tonu pea.
King, A. J, rāua ko T. Turia. He korowai oranga: the Māori health strategy. Te Whanganui-a-Tara: Ministry of Health, 2002.
Mead, Hirini Moko, rāua ko Neil Grove. Ngā pepeha a ngā tūpuna. Te Whanganui-a-Tara: Department of Māori Studies, Victoria University of Wellington, 1989.
Metge, Joan. New growth from old: the whanau in the modern world. Te Whanganui-a-Tara: Victoria University Press, 1995.
Reedy, R. ‘Māori ways of knowing and being.’ Kei Walker, T. W. mā. Challenging science. Te Papaioea: Dunmore Press, 2004, 111–125.
Walker, T. W. ‘An exploration of the evolution and application of the notion of whānau.’ Tuhinga tohu kairangi, Victoria University of Wellington, 2010.
Walker, T. W. Whānau is whānau. Te Whanganui-a-Tara: Families Commission, 2006.