LOCAL CHARITY
Horotiu House Story
He ōrite te “Horo” ki te “tere”, ko te “tui” ko te au o te awa e rere ana. Naa Rakataura, te tohunga o Tainui waka a “Horotiu” i tapa.
I noho mai ngaa tuupuna i mua i ngaa tau 1300, aa, he nui ngaa paa o Horotiu ki teenei riu. He nui ngaa koorero moo Horotiu heoi anoo anei ngaa puukoorero e rua.
Ko Korokii te matau o Hape raaua ko Hauaa. Naa Hauaa ka puta mai ko Kahoki raatou ko Werewere, ko Rangitaupi, ko Puukauae. Naa Korokii te paa o Horotiu i hanga ahakoa he whakatupuranga tauwaru i muri i te haerenga mai o Tuurongo. He rangatira a Tuurongo noo Tainui, aa, i tae mai raaua ko Mahinaarangi, toona hoa wahine noo Ngaati Kahungunu. I tae mai engari kaaore i noho. Naa teenei hononga i whakaingoatia e rua o ngaa whare tuupuna ki te marae o Tuurangawaewae, ko Tuurongo me Mahinaarangi.
Ko te koorero tuarua ko te waa i noho a Korokii maa ki Horotiu. I noho hoki a Taowhakairo ki teenei waahi, noo Ngaati Kauwhata ia. E ai ki ngaa koorero i whai a Korokii i te wahine a Taowhakairo. He kahu waero too Korokii, i te hokinga mai o Taowhakairo i kite eetehi maramara huruhuru o taua kahu waero ki te whatitoka o toona rua kuumara. Naa toona wiri i werohia e Taowhakairo a Korokii me to kii “Ka pakapaka oo koouma ki ngaa ahi o Kura-paa-ngoi”. I mate a Taowhakairo i teenei pakanga.
Taaria te waa i whakaae a Te Waharoa kia noho a Ngaati Maru ki Horotiu hei waahi whakaruruhau mai i ngaa tauaa o Ngaapuhi. I te mutunga o te pakanga ki Taumatawiiwwii, naa Te Waharoa I puumau te mana whanua o Maungatautari me Horotiu ki oona uri o Ngaati Korokii. Kua noho ahikaa a Ngaati Korokii tae noa ki teenei waa.
Horotiu means the swift current of the Waikato River: horo means fast flowing, and tiu means the water current. Horotiu was one of the names given to the Waikato River by Rakataura, the tohunga (priest) of the Tainui waka.
Horotiu Paa was occupied by our tuupuna (ancestors) from pre-1300. The Horotiu community included many paa along the Karaapiro gully. There are multiple stories about Horotiu, and here are two of them.
Korokii, the chief of Horotiu Paa, was the father of Hape and Hauaa. The sons of Hauaa were Kahoki, Werewere, Rangitaupi and Puukauae. Horotiu Paa was constructed under the leadership of Korokii some eight generations after Tuurongo. Tuurongo was a Tainui rangatira (chief) who arrived in the area with his Ngaati Kahungunu wife, Mahinaarangi. They arrived but did not stay. This marriage is honoured by the naming of two ancestral houses at Tuurangawaewae Marae in Ngaaruawaahia.
The second story is when Korokii and his peole occupied Horotiu. Taowhakairo, a descendant of Kauwhata, also lived in the area. This story tells of Korokii visiting the wife of Taowhakairo while he was away. Korokii was renowned for wearing his kahu waero (dog hair cloak), and when Taowhakairo returned, he noticed dog hair in the entrance of the kuumara pit. Enraged, he threatened Korokii, saying “Ka pakapaka oo koouma ki ngaa ahi o Kura-paa-ngoi” (Your breast bones will be singed on the fires at Kura-paa-ngoi). The ensuring battle resulted in the death of Taowhakairo.
Many generations later, Te Waharoa of Ngaati Hauaa allowed Ngaati Maru to occupy Horotiu Paa as a sanctuary from Ngaapuhi invaders. After the battle of Taumatawiiwii (1830), Te Waharoa agreed for Horotiu Paa and Maungatautari maunga (mountain) to be cared for by his Ngaati Korokii relations. To this day, they remain ahi kaa (keepers of the home fires) of this area.
Copyright: Ngāti Koroki Kahukura Trust and Ngāti Hauā Iwi Trust, 2015
