History

Ko te uptake o te ingoa o tenei Runanga i te hao, ko tenei tuna tetahi kai taonga o te hapu nei.
I whakaingoatia e Rakihouia te awa, ko te Waihao. Koia te tama a Rakaihautu raua ko Waiariki-o-Aio. Ko Tapuiti te hoa wahine o Rakihouia. Tokorua nga wahine nei i pai ke raua i nga hao o te awa o Waihao.

I tae mai nei enei tangata ariki ma runga I te waka Uruao.  Ko Uruao tetahi waka o nga waka I tae mai tuatahi ki Aotearoa me Te Wa’i Pounamu.

Kei te rere tonu te awa o Waihao mai i tona hikuawa i Te Tari a Te Kaumira  ki te Tai o Araiteuru, kit e Hapua o Wainono, te kete kai o nga mana whenua.

Ko te pokapu o te takiwa nei, ko te Wainono, e mau tahi ana I Arowhenua ki Waitaki awa me ki uta, kit e Tiritiri o Te Moana.

“Ko te whenua e haroa ana e te Kahu.

Translation

The origin of the name of this Runanga is the shortfin eel.  This eel was a treasured food of this hapu. The river was named by Rakihouia who was the son of Rakaihautu and Waiariki-o-Aio.  Tapuiti was the wife of Rakihouia.

Both women were known to prefer the eels from the Waihao River.  These revered people arrived on the waka Uruao.  Uruao was one of the first waka to arrive here in New Zealand.

The river Waihao still flows from it’s source in the Hunter Hills to the coast and to the lagoon, the Wainono, the food basket of the local people.

The centre of the takiwa is the Wainono lagoon, shareing interests with Arowhenua to the Waitaki River and inland to the Main Divide.

Our History

Maori of the Waihao, whakapapa to Waitaha, Rapuwai, Hawea, Kati Mamoe and Ngai Tahu.

Waihao is their turangawaewae.

Waitaha trace their lineage to the waka Uruao, which arrived over a thousand years ago landing first near Whakatu (Nelson area) whereupon a land exploration party led by Rakaihautu, the Rangatira of the waka,set off to explore Te Wa’i Pounamu.

Rakihouia took over captaining the waka as it circumnavigated the island.
The two groups met up after a protracted separation, at the mouth of the Waihao River and settled there.
Rapuwai and Hawea are also ancient peoples who were known to prefer inland lakes and waterways.

Kati Mamoe descended from Hotu/Whatu Mamoe, migrated south from Te Ika a Maui in the sixteenth century and Ngai Tahu followed a century later and whakapapa to both Araiteuru and Takitimu waka.

It is through the marae that our Whanau maintain a sense of continuity with our Tipuna.

Whakatauki

Passing down attributes from ancestors
“E kore e taka te parapara a ona tipuna, tukua iho ki a ia”

“The qualities of his ancestors will not fail to be fulfilled, they must descend to him.”

Planning and Forethought
“Kai atu, whakairi atu kit e pataka”
“Eat heartily but hang some away in the storehouse.”

Education

“Whaowhia te kete matauranga”

“Fill the basket of knowledge”