To mark Anzac Day, members of the New Zealand Defence Force in Ypres, Belgium, performed a spine-tingling haka for their Australian counterparts.
The NZD performed ‘He Taua' after the Last post Service at the Menin Gate Memorial for the Missing, which is dedicated to the Commonwealth soldiers killed in the Ypres Salient during World War One and whose graves are unknown.
The Ypres Salient is the area around the Belgium city and was the scene of some of the biggest and bloodiest battles in WW1.
According to the Ministry for Culture and Heritage's NZ History website, by the time Kiwi solders were withdrawn from the Ypres salient front line in February 1918, the New Zealanders had suffered more than 18,000 casualties which included about 5000 deaths.
Our Haka to the Australian Defence Force at the Menin Gate Ieper after the Last Post Service on #AnzacDay // #Force4NZ #WesternFront pic.twitter.com/aSEfUEONDE
— NZ Defence Force (@NZDefenceForce) April 25, 2017
THE NZ DEFENCE FORCE HAKA
Written by Warrant Officer Doug Wallace of the Royal New Zealand Air Force, ‘He Taua' is a haka taparahi – a haka performed without weapons.
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MĀORI |
ENGLISH |
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Torona kei waho! |
Prepare! |
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Kei whao |
Arms outstretched! |
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He taua! |
Warriors, alert! |
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He taua! |
Warriors, alert! |
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Mā wai e tū ake?! |
Who will stand to?! |
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Taua Moana! |
Navy will stand to! |
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Tūmatauenga! |
Army will stand to! |
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Taua-a-Rangi e! |
Airforce will stand to |
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I ahaha! |
I ahaha! |
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Ko te Ope Kātua o Aotearoa e! |
We are the New Zealand Defence Force! |
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He toki nā Tū |
We are the instruments of Tū! |
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He toki nā Rongo e, |
We are the instruments of Rongo |
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I ahaha |
I ahaha! |
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Mate atu he toa… |
If a warrior should fall… |
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Ara mai rā he toa! |
Another shall rise to take his place! |
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Ngā rau e toru o te patu |
We are the three edges of the blade |
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Kotahi e! |
Of a single patu |
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Ana! Ana! Ana! Aue hi! |
Ana! Ana! Ana! Aue hi! |
To learn more about the NZ Defence Force haka, visit NZDF's Facebook page.
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