Maramataka : the Maori moon calendar

Abstract

Measurement of time by means of the sun, moon and stars is an ancient practice. All societies originally depended on day/night length and the occurrence of the solstices as well as the movements of heavenly bodies across the night sky to determine seasons of the year. Maramataka, or monthly calendars based on the phases of the moon were common practice in Polynesia. Here it formed the basis of the cultural life of the community, acting as an indicator of appropriate times for the onset or cessation of various activities. Foremost among these was their ability to foretell appropriate and inappropriate times for food gathering such as the planting and harvesting of crops and the catching of fish. This knowledge originally came from Eastern Polynesia to Aotearoa -New Zealand in the canoes of the ancestors, where it had to undergo adaptation to a southern hemisphere sky, seasons, and climate. Following European settlement the maramataka became progressively replaced by timekeepers such as clocks and watches and a monthly calendar based on the annual movements of the sun. Accompanying its demise was the loss of knowledge and practices associated with the movements of the planets and stars, of the tides and of each moon night. Loss of land and resources including traditional horticultural crops accompanied by the drift to cities further resulted in loss of the maramataka knowledge associated with these food resources. Early ethnographers recorded some of this knowledge while it was still in use among various tribes. More recently, there has been renewed interest in the traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples in general including Māori, particularly that concerning the environment. Motivated by concerns about the sustainability of natural resources and a desire to create technologies that are more environmentally as well as socially compatible, scientists are also becoming interested in understanding the scientific basis of traditional knowledge possessed by Māori. This report provides a collation of 43 published and unpublished maramataka from various tribal sources. It aims to provide a preliminary analysis of the origin of the moon night names, and from an examination of the similarities and differences among each of these maramataka, it suggests the rationale for the sequential grouping of these names according to the phases of the moon. Brief comments are also made concerning the reasons for the different number of moon nights (ranging from 28 to 32) in the calendars included in this report.