#59 Dr Rangi Mātāmua: Everything you NEED to know about Matariki
episodePreviously titled “#59 Dr Rangi Matamua” — renamed by the publisher on Aug 5, 2026
Transcript
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
if it wasn't for a book that was handed down from one of his ancestors, we may not celebrate Matariki the way we do now.
His last words to me were, knowledge that isn't shared isn't knowledge. And I've really kept that as a mantra in terms of how Matariki's been brought back. A large portion of that owes itself to the knowledge that's contained within that manuscript.
Just had a really amazing conversation with, you know, an amazing man. Besides the fact that he supports New South Wales and he decided to wear a rubbish New South Wales jersey on my podcast. What a disgrace. You're not wearing that in the podcast, are you?
You know, you wouldn't be upset about it.
You know, to be honest, I really don't know too much about Matariki, so it was a great opportunity for me to ask, what is Matariki? What's its origin story? How do we celebrate it?
All those stars are the oldest and most well-recorded group of stars in human history. Wow. They are painted on a cave in southern France 17,000 years ago.
As a nation, as a people, I think if we implement what Matariki is about, I think the world will be a better place. So don't forget to like, comment, share, and subscribe. Dr. Rangi, enjoy. This podcast is made by the amazing team at Fanaticals. They put up with me, so they're pretty epic. Kia ora, bro. Kia ora. Rangi Matamo. How's it going, my bro? Good, good. Do you want to zip down your jacket?
No.
Look, I thought about you as I was coming in today. You know, I saw you on one of your shows and you had this disgusting maroon colour on. I thought Matariki rose this morning and the stars were very blue. Sorry, bro. I just had to, you know.
You wore that specially for me, didn't you?
I wore it specially for today.
At least you're zipping it. It's like, you know, you've turned your patch inside out. What have you been up to, bro?
Busy time for me, man. So the Matariki holiday is upon us and it's, I don't know, it's just pretty much taken over my life for the last 10 years and busy, busy time.
Yeah, I don't know, but, you know, I'm half Māori from...
What is Matariki and why does it mark the Māori New Year?
and half salmon but I don't know too much about Matariki and it seems to have like had a research would you call it a research like it's really yeah well not a lot of people did know about it but right across Polynesia the Pacific
Every island in Polynesia, you'll find Matariki. That's the name that they call the cluster of stars, the Pleiades, on Easter Island in Rapa Nui, in Hawaii, Samoa, Tonga, right across and here in Aotearoa. And before I guess the arrival of other cultures, it was the main celebration marking the beginning of our new year. But as we became probably Christianized and colonized, We did away with traditional celebrations and we celebrated things that we imported from the other side of the globe.
Yeah.
Easter, Christmas. And so not a lot of people grew up with it. And I think it's made its way back into popular culture and part of, I don't know, the fabric of who we're becoming as a nation.
Yeah. And for a lot of people, it's a public holiday. Yeah. But what's the importance of it?
It's a cluster of stars that here in Aotearoa rises just before the sun in the morning, so you know when it's in that position that we're around the shortest day of the year. So it's when we celebrate our New Year. You know, in the other side of the globe, they celebrate New Year's in winter, and so did we. But we imported a different calendar, so now we celebrate it in the middle of Christmas. Our ancestors, they celebrated in winter because they knew the summer would be returning. And it really was a time where people, three main things that Matariki represents. It was a time that we reflected on the people that we'd lost throughout the year. And we actually have a ceremony where we call out their names because we believe in that moment their spirit travels into the cosmos and becomes a star for eternity in the sky.
We celebrate the present like it's the winter feast, feasting, sleeping in, doing all of the things that we find enjoyment in. And we come together and celebrate each other.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–2:31
2
What is Matariki and why does it mark the Māori New Year?
2:31–20:34
3
What three core meanings does Matariki hold for Māori communities?
20:34–21:43
4
How does Matariki support wellbeing, grieving and community connection?
21:43–32:38
5
How did Rangi Mātāmua’s family manuscript spark his work on Māori astronomy?
32:38–33:19
Speakers
2 identifiedMore from Unfiltered with Dave Letele
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