新西兰英语 788 Matariki
英语课
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 carving 1, telling stories and flying kites.
Matariki is a reminder 2 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 – tribe 3, large family group
?harvest – gathering 4 food e.g. digging kumera to store for the winter
?weaving – Maori cloaks 5, mats and kete (baskets) were woven from flax (verb: weave, wove, woven)
?carving – Maori men carved wood
?observed – watched closely
?waka – open canoes
n.雕刻品，雕花
- 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。
n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示
- 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。
n.部落，种族，一伙人
- 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。
n.集会，聚会，聚集
- 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。