Archive for the 'E Papa Waiari Stick Game' Category
Contents
Posts
Learn to Play the New Zealand Stick Game – E Papä Waiari
Thursday, March 12th, 2009E Papä Waiari is a song and a stick game played in New Zealand.
John Archer, of the site New Zealand Folk Song, wrote me, “Girl Guides and Girl Scouts all over the world learn the Maori stick tossing song ‘E Papa Waiari’.” According to his site, this is a stick game which are called “Tï Räkau”. These games consist of “the rhythmic throwing and catching of sticks from person to person.”
Here are the lyrics to “E Papä Waiari” in Maori, followed by an English translation and two YouTube videos of the game and song…
E Papä Waiari
1. E papä Waiari, taku nei mahi
Taku nei mahi, he tuku roimataChorus:
Ë aue, ka mate au; E hine hoki mai rä
Ë aue, ka mate au; E hine hoki mai rä2. Mäku e kaute öhïkoitanga
Mäku e kaute öhïkoitangaChorus
O Elder Waiari
1. O elder Waiari my habit has been
My habit has been to shed tearsChorus:
Alas I will die; oh girl, return to me
Alas I will die; oh girl, return to me2. I will count your footsteps
I will count your footstepsChorus
I like this video because you can clearly hear the lyrics…
This video has slow parts, so you can learn how to play the stick game (though it gets silly at times):
Here are more Maori Stick Games/Dances:
Enjoy!
Mama Lisa
________