Living by the Moon: Te Maramataka a Te Whānau-ā-Apanui | Wiremu Tāwhai

Living by the Moon sets out and discusses the maramataka or lunar month and the way the days and nights were understood according to Te Whānau-ā-Apanui tribal knowledge. Te Whānau-ā-Apanui ancestors were dependent on the environment, and this led them to closely study the changes and cycles in nature so they could ensure their survival in their tribal area. Knowledge of aspects such as the sea conditions and best planting and harvesting times at each day of the month were carefully observed and remembered, and community activities were arranged according to the phases of the moon.

Wiremu Tawhai (Te Whanau-a-Apanui) was a teacher of language and culture, scholar, author, actor and broadcaster. An elder of Te Whanau-a-Apanui, he learned traditional knowledge from a young age and was acknowledged as an expert on oral literature and marae protocols and an authority on marmataka, the Maori calendar. He was an advisor to national science organisations, on the board of Te Waka Toi and received a Ta Kingi Ihaka Award for his work in protecting and promoting Maori arts.