Te timatanga o Ngāti Manu

Ko te tīmatanga o tēnei iwi a Ngāti Manu arā, i timata āke i Muriwhenua. Anei ētahi o ngā kōrero a tōku matua, e kī ana i ahu mai a Ngāti Manu ia Ngāmanu, he tupuna ia no Tohe. Ko ngā kōrero e pā ana ki tēra Tupuna rongonui a Tohe. Ko tōna kāinga i Muriwhenua. Ko Maunga Piko, ko Kapowairua. Ko tōna iwi ngā kaitiaki o Te Rerenga Wairua.

I tera wa ano hoki ka pakanga te iwi o Tohe ki a Ngāti Whātua, e noho a Ngāti Whātua i Muriwhenua. Ko te maungārongo i hohoutia mo tēnei pakanga, he mea tuku e Tohe tana mokopuna a Raninikura II hei wahine ma tētahi o ngā rangatira o Ngāti Whātua. No muri rawa ka whakarērea ake e rātou te whenua o Muriwhenua.

Ka heke rātou ki Te Wairoa noho ai. Ko te īngoa o to rātou Pa, ko Ounuwhao i te rohe o Takiwira. Ka tupu te aroha i roto i a Tohe. Ka whakamomori te kaumatua nei mo tana mokopuna. Ka whakaaro nuitia e ia me hāere ia ki te kite i a Te Raninikura i mua i tana matenga.

Ka whakareri ia ki te hāere. Kātahi ka huri ake tana iwi ka mea “Kua kaumatua rawa koe, pēhea ka mate koe ia koe e hāere na”. Ka huri ake te kaumatua nei ka ki "Mēna ahau ki te mate me kapokapo ake taku wairua e koutou” ana, i īngoatia taua wāhi ra ko Kapowairua.

Ka haere atu a Tohe me tana hāwini, ko Ariki. He maha ngā īngoa o Te Tai Hauāuru i tapangia e Tohe.

I whakawhitingia te moana o Hokianga. No tana tāenga atu ki Maunganui ka pā mai ki a ia te matekai. I te wa ka takato ia i runga i te tihi o Maunganui ka rere mai te kahui manu ki te whāngai i a ia ki te kai kia ngata rawa tana hiahia. I tana hekenga mai i taua maunga ra ka karangatia e ia tētahi wāhi pātata nei ko 'Manuwhetai'. Engari no tana tāenga atu ki te tatahi o Ripiro ka tino ngoikore ia ka hinga ka mate ia ki reira. Ko te ingoa o taua wāhi ra ko Mahutu.

E ai ki ngā kōrero a ōku tūpuna ka kainga ngā kanohi o Tohe e te manu. Na runga o tēna ka puta tēnei īngoa karanga ko Ngāti Manu mo ngā uri o te Raninikura II.

Na reira he ingoa tawhito a Ngāti Manu ki roto i Te Taitokerau. I nekehia a Ngāti Manu mai te Wairoa ki Tautoro noho ai i te wā o Te Rawheao.

Te Rawheao

He tupuna rongonui ia. Ka moe ia i a Te Rukenga, he tamahine a Te Ra. Koia te tupuna nui o Ngāti Rāhiri. Ma tēna moenga ka honohonotia a Ngāti Manu ki nga uri o Rāhiri. Kātahi ka timata te urunga mai o Ngāti Manu ki ngā rohe o te Tokerau ara ko te Pewhairangi.

I whakatauakitia “Ko te Tokowhitu o Te Rawheao” na te mea he toa wana tamariki katoa ara ngā taitama me ngā mea wahine ki te mau patu, te mau tao i ngā pakanga o Ngāti Manu. Ko ngā tamariki nei ko Te Au, ko Taake, ko Kohinetau, ko Ngaro, ko Taumata, ko Korora, ko Ngaromata.

Ko nga kāinga i nohotia i tera wā:
a) ko Waimatenui;
b) ko Tautoro;
c) ko Maunga Kawakawa;
d) ko Taumarere;
e) ko Manurewa;
f) ko Pakarukiterangi;
g) ko Ruapekapeka;
h) ko Puhipuhi; me
i) ko Paihia.

Ko ngā Manga o Ngāti Manu
a) ko tera i a Tara i Tautoro;
b) ko tera i a Pōmare i Taiamai; me
c) ko tera i a Hautai raua ko Te Huru i Taumarere.

The History of Ngāti Manu According to my forefathers Ngāti Manu derives from Ngamanu an ancestor of Tohe. In respect of this well-known ancestor, he lived at Muriwhenua, his mountains are Maunga Piko and Kapowairua. His people were the guardians of Te Rerenga Wairua.

Tohe's iwi fought against Ngāti Whatua at Muriwhenua. As a token of peacemaking, Tohe gave his grandchild Raninikura II as a wife for the chief of Ngāti Whatua.

They (Ngāti Whatua) then moved to Te Wairoa to live. Their pa Ounuwhao was located in the Dargaville district. Tohe felt a great longing for his grandchild. Eventually he decided to travel to see Te Raninikura before he passed away.

He made preparations for the journey. His people urged him not to go, "You are far too old, what if you die on this journey?" The elder responded, "If I die, grasp hold of my spirit”, hence the name of that place, Kapowairua.

Tohe left with his assistant Ariki. Many places in Te Tai Tokerau were named by Tohe on this journey.

He traversed the waters of Hokianga. On reaching Maunganui he was hungry. When he lay down on the summit of Maunganui a flock of birds flew to where he was and fed him until he was satisfied. On his descent from that mountain he named a nearby place 'Manuwhetai'. However on his arrival at the shore at Riripo he was exhausted and died there. That place is called Mahutu.

According to tradition, Tohe's eyes were eaten by birds, and because of that the hapū Ngāti Manu came about, for the descendants of Raninikura II.

Therefore Ngāti Manu is an old name in Te Tai Tokerau. Ngāti Manu moved from Wairoa to Tautoro in the time of Te Rawheao.

Te Rawheao

He is a significant ancestor. He married Te Rukenga, daughter of Te Ra, the main ancestor of Ngāti Rahiri. Through this union Ngāti Manu is linked to Rahiri. From here Ngāti Manu moved into the Bay of Islands area ( Tokerau / Pewhairangi.) The saying goes "The Seven of Te Rawheao', for his children male and female were accomplished warriors in the battles of Ngāti Manu. These children were Te Au, Taake, Kohinetau, Ngaro, Taumata, Korora and Ngaromata.

Their homes at that time:
a) Waimatenui; b) Tautoro; c) Maunga Kawakawa; d) Taumarere; e) Manurewa; f) Pakarukiterangi; g) Ruapekapeka; h) Puhipuhi; and i) Paihia.

Te Rawheao’s granddaughter Te Inumanga, was an important ancestress of Ngāti Manu. Her whakapapa is as follows: Te Inumanga was the only daughter of Kohinetau of Ngāti Manu and Te Kohuru Te Whata of Ngai Tu. Her father Te Kohuru was a famous Ngapuhi Carver Te Inumanga was born at Tautoro and lived at the Ngāti Manu Pa, Haunganui. She married Peketahi of Ngāti Rangi and moved to Hokianga to live. It was during a domestic argument with her husband that she fled Hokianga and went into the forest at Te Waimatenui, near the banks of the Mangakahia River, to live. She was found by a kaumatua from Ngāti Toki who took pity on her and looked after her. It was his aroha for her that he gifted the lands at Te Waimatenui to Te Inumanga. She returned to Hokianga and brought her husband and Whanau onto the land.

Ngāti Manu retained these lands for hundreds of years until the arrival of the Native Land Court in the 1870s. When the Te Waimatenui Block came before the court it was awarded to John Bryers and sold the next day, thereby extinguishing the legacy of Te Inumanga and Ngāti Manu customary title to that Whenua.

The branches of Ngāti Manu were:
a) The group with Tara at Tautoro;
b) The group with Pōmare at Taiamai; and
c) The group with Hautai and Te Parenga and their husband Te Huru at Taumarere.

WAI 1040 Amended Closing Submission on behalf of Ngāti Manu dated 20 July 2017