新西兰英语 788 Matariki

 　　Matariki is the Maori New Year. Just before dawn this morning, the seven stars of the Pleiades which Maori call Matariki, appeared in the sky. Some Maori iwi celebrate Matariki after the next full moon or at the next new moon.

　　For Maori, it was a time of remembering those who had died during that year. It was also a time to enjoy a rest after the harvest. There was plenty of food stored for the winter so this was a time for preparing food for guests. It was also a time for relaxing by singing, dancing, weaving and carving¹, telling stories and flying kites.

　　Matariki is a reminder² of the importance of the stars to Maori. They observed the night sky and used the stars to know which way to sail their waka. The first Maori who sailed to New Zealand from Hawaiki in the Pacific followed the stars at night to find a new land.

　　Listen to June 21st 2012 to hear more about Matariki.

　　Vocabulary

　　?dawn – sun rise

　　?iwi – tribe³, large family group

　　?harvest – gathering⁴ food e.g. digging kumera to store for the winter

　　?weaving – Maori cloaks⁵, mats and kete (baskets) were woven from flax (verb: weave, wove, woven)

　　?carving – Maori men carved wood

　　?observed – watched closely

　　?waka – open canoes

1 carving   

n.雕刻品，雕花

参考例句：

• All the furniture in the room had much carving.房间里所有的家具上都有许多雕刻。
• He acquired the craft of wood carving in his native town.他在老家学会了木雕手艺。

2 reminder   

n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示

参考例句：

• I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
• It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知，她才付应该交的房租。

3 tribe   

n.部落，种族，一伙人

参考例句：

• This is a subject tribe.这是个受他人统治的部落。
• Many of the tribe's customs and rituals are as old as the hills.这部落的许多风俗、仪式都极其古老。

4 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

5 cloaks   

n.（尤指旧时的）披风( cloak的名词复数 )；斗篷；外衣；战袍v.遮盖，掩盖( cloak的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• On the left are the arrangements for the gentlemen's cloaks. 左边是放男客的外衣的地方。 来自辞典例句
• I observed that they were both wrapped in cloaks, and appeared to conceal themselves. 我察觉他俩都包裹在外套里面，似乎有意隐藏自己。 来自辞典例句