What is Maramataka?

Introduction

Maramataka is a Māori Lunar calendar. Which means it’s a calendar that they use for a moon phase every month. It’s confusing and new others though but here is some facts and info that may help.

What is really Maramataka?

If you look on google and search ‘what does “maramataka” mean’, it literally defines as ‘the moon turning’. It was a traditional way  Māori used to mark the year. Most iwi had 12 months and named each moon phase it’s own name (depending on the location you’re at) to mark the year.

How does it work?

A lunar month cycle lasts for 29.53 days and each night is given a name according to the Maramataka. Then the cycle starts over by a new moon which means the first night is Whiro, then Tirea and so on. The following names for the days of the Maramataka were taken by the number of iwi, only difference is the moon’s phases.

                                                    (Fun fact: The Maramataka named 29.53 nights and designed symbols next to them about how good was food gathering going to be.

For ex. Straight lines were meant good nights of fishing and block dots meant fishing with a torchlight. For Whiro, a line and dot meant both but A night such as Auta was indicated as unlucky in all forms and sources of food gathering.)

How is the Māori lunar calendar different to the calendar we use?

The Māori calendar is different because it follows the movements of the moon throughout each month rather than the sun. In tradition, they didn’t mark the months like we normally do but follows 2 seasons, summer and winter.

Conclusion

It’s very interesting and new to learn about this, naming each night with the movements of the moon, marking the months by seasons it’s so crazy to a calendar like that. I’m glad I now understand what the Maramataka is.