New Zealand’s “Twelve Days of Christmas – A Pukeko in a Ponga Tree “
Here’s the annotated version of A Pukeko in a Ponga Tree – with definitions of the words below the song…
A Pukeko in a Ponga Tree
(The 12 Days of Christmas)On the first day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
A pukeko in a ponga treeOn the second day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
Two kumera
And a pukeko in a ponga treeOn the third day of Christmas…
and so on, until…
On the twelfth day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
Twelve piupius swinging
Eleven haka lessons
Ten juicy fish heads
Nine sacks of pipis
Eight plants of puha
Seven eels a swimming
Six pois a twirling
Five – big – fat – pigs!
Four huhu grubs
Three flax kits
Two kumera
And a pukeko in a ponga tree!Here’s a photo of a pukeko…
Here are the definitions…
Pukeko = type of bird found in NZ
Ponga Tree = a fern tree that grows in NZ
Kumera = a yellow sweet potato with a purple inside core
Piuspius = a skirt made from strips of flax. They look like hula skirts. They’re worn by the Maori (indigenous people of NZ) during certain dances and special celebrations.
Haka = war chant/dance
Pipis = small shellfish
Puha = a type of sow thistle that is eaten as a vegetable in NZ
Pois = Maori word for ball – they’re two balls on the end of two ropes and they’re twirled around making patterns during some Maori dances
Huhu = a small edible grub or beetle found in NZ
Many thanks to John Archer of New Zealand Folk Song for sending me this song. Ka pai!
Come visit the Mama Lisa’s World New Zealand Page for more Songs from New Zealand!
December 11th, 2005 at 2:59 am
That was hillarious!
December 14th, 2005 at 5:17 am
its so nice,first time i read this lyrics and i love it eventhough im a filipino
February 5th, 2006 at 3:43 pm
kia ora mama lisa
good to see your new website. just a few suggestions to improve the content…
there is no ’s’ in Maori language therefore
piuspius, pois and pipis, as you have written are incorrect – just drop your s off.
kumera is the incorrect spelling, kumara is the correct one.
The lyrics were written by Kingi Ihaka in 1981.
Happy new year to you
- Ihipera
March 22nd, 2006 at 12:59 am
I agree with ihipera. and my understanding is that Ponga is spelt ‘Punga’.
but i guess it wouldnt be that important. i mean people still say ‘mower’ instead of ‘moa’ and ‘kaapa haaka’ instead of ‘Kapa haka’ or and
‘whycatoe’ instead of ‘waikato’ pronounced y-cut-o like the o in Or.
i think you should get the picture by now.
(NOT intended to offend!)
Ma te wa
December 5th, 2007 at 10:37 am
Merry Xmas to you all from a KIWI living in Kentucky USA
Kia ora x
April 28th, 2009 at 9:12 pm
I am really pleased to see this song on your site
Kia Ora,
Rachel
November 15th, 2009 at 8:47 pm
i think that ‘the new zealand 12 days of christmas’ is a disgrace to the christan religon
November 15th, 2009 at 9:04 pm
I don’t think there’s any offense intended. It’s just that all of the traditional Christmas songs are geared towards Christmas in Winter… while in the southern hemisphere it’s summer at Christmastime. So one can understand their desire to have songs that fit their surroundings too.
November 18th, 2009 at 8:38 pm
Patrick, grow up! How is the Kiwi 12 days of christmas an offence to the Christian religion?
It is no worse than the original 12 days of Christmas song, Santa or any of the other commercialised rubbish that negates the true meaning of Christmas.
November 20th, 2009 at 7:51 pm
Patrick, you are joking aren’t you? How exactly?