![All Blacks Haka](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/21/All_Blacks_Haka.jpg)
The
haka
Haka (; plural ''haka'', in both Māori and English) are a variety of ceremonial performance art in Māori culture. It is often performed by a group, with vigorous movements and stamping of the feet with rhythmically shouted or chanted accompani ...
, a traditional dance of the
Māori people
The Māori (, ) are the indigenous Polynesian people of mainland New Zealand (). Māori originated with settlers from East Polynesia, who arrived in New Zealand in several waves of canoe voyages between roughly 1320 and 1350. Over several ce ...
, has been used in sports in
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
and overseas. The challenge has been adopted by the
New Zealand national rugby union team
The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987 ...
, the "All Blacks", and a number of other New Zealand national teams perform before their international matches; some non-New Zealand sports teams have also adopted the haka.
History
![Haka in paris lillustration 1925](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a5/Haka_in_paris_lillustration_1925.jpg)
During 1888–89, the
New Zealand Native team toured the
Home Nations
Home Nations is a collective term with one of two meanings depending on context. Politically it means the nations of the constituent countries of the United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales). In sport, if a sport is g ...
of the United Kingdom, the first team from a colony to do so. It was originally intended that only Māori players would be selected, but four non-Māori were finally included. As the non-Māori were born in New Zealand, the name "Native" was considered justified. The team performed a haka before the start of their first match on 3 October 1888 against Surrey. They were described as using the words "Ake ake kia kaha" which suggests that the haka was not "Ka Mate".
The "Ka Mate" haka was not well known at this time. In 1900, a newspaper reported New Zealand soldiers in the
Boer War
The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...
chanting "Ka Mate! Ka Mate! Ka ora! Ka ora! Hae-haea! Ha!" The soldiers thought it meant "Kill him! Chop him up! Baste him!"
But during the
1901 Royal Tour,
Ngati Kahungunu
''Ngati'' is a 1987 New Zealand feature film directed by Barry Barclay, written by Tama Poata and produced by John O'Shea.
Production
''Ngati'' is of historical and cultural significance in New Zealand as it is the first feature film written an ...
warriors revived "Ka Mate" when they performed it to welcome the
Duke of Cornwall
Duke of Cornwall is a title in the Peerage of England, traditionally held by the eldest son of the reigning British monarch, previously the English monarch. The duchy of Cornwall was the first duchy created in England and was established by a ro ...
at Rotorua. Newspapers described the full actions of this "ancient ngeri", printing its complete Maori words and an accurate translation. A movie cameraman recorded the performance. "Ka Mate" became famous, and was widely performed throughout New Zealand.
Nevertheless, when New Zealand played its first full international test match against Australia in Sydney in August 1903, the New Zealanders' war cry was "Tena Koe Kangaroo." (full details below)
In 1905 New Zealand made their first tour of Britain. This was the first time the team were referred to as the
All Blacks
The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987 ...
and this particular team also became known as the '
Originals'. It is uncertain whether they performed a haka before every match, but they at least performed "Ka Mate" before their first test, against
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
, and before the match against
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
. The Welsh crowd, led by the Welsh team, responded by singing the
Welsh national anthem
"" () is the official national anthem of Wales. The title, taken from the first words of the song, means "Old Land of My Fathers" in Welsh, usually rendered in English as simply "Land of My Fathers". The words were written by Evan James and ...
.
When a
New Zealand Army
, image = New Zealand Army Logo.png
, image_size = 175px
, caption =
, start_date =
, country =
, branch = ...
team played Wales in 1916, the words of "Ka Mate" were included in the printed programme, indicating that the haka was established as an accompaniment to New Zealand rugby teams playing overseas.
![New Zealand national rugby league team (26 October 2008)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/New_Zealand_national_rugby_league_team_%2826_October_2008%29.jpg)
The 1924–25 New Zealand rugby team which toured the United Kingdom, Irish Free State, France and Canada and which was nicknamed the
Invincibles, performed a haka that was written for them during the voyage to England by two supporters, Judge
Frank Acheson of the
Native Land Court
Native may refer to:
People
* Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth
* Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory
** Native Americans (disambiguation)
In arts and enterta ...
and Wiremu Rangi of
Gisborne. The haka was led by star player
George Nēpia
George Nēpia (25 April 1905 – 27 August 1986) was a New Zealand Māori rugby union and rugby league player. He is remembered as an exceptional full-back and one of the most famous Māori rugby players. He was inducted into the New Zealand Spor ...
. It was performed before all but two of the tour matches. Reporters criticised the team for disappointing the crowd on the two occasions it was not performed.
A pre-match haka was not always performed on All Blacks tours. The team that toured
Britain in 1935–36 did not perform one before matches, although they did some impromptu performances at social functions. In the early decades, haka were only rarely performed at home matches, such as the third test of the
1921 Springboks tour, played in
Wellington
Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...
.
"Ka Mate"
The All Blacks are believed to have first performed a choreographed and synchronized version
of the "
Ka Mate
"Ka Mate" () is a Māori haka composed by Te Rauparaha, war leader of the Ngāti Toa tribe of the North Island of New Zealand.
Composition
Te Rauparaha composed "Ka Mate" circa 1820 as a celebration of life over death after his lucky escape from ...
" haka in 1905.
It is said that this Haka was composed by
Te Rauparaha
Te Rauparaha (c.1768 – 27 November 1849) was a Māori rangatira (chief) and war leader of the Ngāti Toa tribe who took a leading part in the Musket Wars, receiving the nickname "the Napoleon of the South". He was influential in the original ...
of
Ngāti Toa
Ngāti Toa, Ngāti Toarangatira or Ngāti Toa Rangatira, is a Māori ''iwi'' (tribe) based in the southern North Island and in the northern South Island of New Zealand. Its ''rohe'' (tribal area) extends from Whanganui in the north, Palmerston N ...
to commemorate his escape from death during an incident in 1810. Chased by his enemies, he hid in a food-storage pit under the skirt of a woman. He climbed out to find someone standing over him, who, instead of killing Te Rauparaha, turned out to be another chief friendly to him. In relief, Te Rauparaha performed this ancient haka, which had been performed all through New Zealand for centuries. The story of Te Rauparaha was merely woven into several older stories about this haka, from a rope-hauling chant to beach a 14th-century voyaging waka, a call for unity under one strong leader, and at the end of an erotic wedding-night chant, 'Kikiki Kakaka.' Ka Mate is still used today together with 'Toia Mai' to "haul the waka" of visitors onto a marae.
Performance
The "Ka Mate" rugby haka generally opens with a set of five preparatory instructions shouted by the leader,
before the whole team joins in:
"Tena Koe Kangarū" 1903
Early in July 1903, when the New Zealand players were assembling in Wellington for their Australian tour, ''
The Evening Post'' reported that "A unique souvenir has been prepared for the New Zealand team by Mr C. Parata. It contains the following warcry":
The ''Posts rugby correspondent later reported that the war-cry was first practised by the New Zealand team in mid-Tasman on Monday 13 July, and first performed "in response to several calls" at their official reception at Sydney on Thursday 16 July. The reported wording and translation were published next day in the ''
Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper i ...
'' and in the ''
Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
'' on 19 July 1903, after the first match against NSW.
The New Zealanders played ten matches on the tour (won 10, lost 0, points for 276, points against 13). Presumably the warcry was performed before all their matches although a search in
PapersPast
The National Library of New Zealand ( mi, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa) is New Zealand's legal deposit library charged with the obligation to "enrich the cultural and economic life of New Zealand and its interchanges with other nations" (''Nat ...
only located mention of its use before "the first test match".
"Ko Niu Tireni" 1924
The Invincibles performed this haka during their unbeaten
1924–1925 tour. It was purpose-written on their voyage to Europe by Wiremu Rangi of Gisborne, and revised by
Judge Acheson of New Zealand's Native Land Court.
It had two verses, but the second verse (''Put a few of your famous teams on display, and let's play each other in friendship'') was omitted in later matches.
First verse of Ko Niu Tireni, with a 1925 translation
Newspaper reports of early games spoke of the "weird war cry of the visitors" in response to the crowds' singing. Thus the fifth game at Swansea began with 40,000 waiting Welshmen singing
Cwm Rhondda
Cwm Rhondda is a popular hymn tune written by John Hughes (1873–1932) in 1907. The name is taken from the Welsh name for the Rhondda Valley.
It is usually used in English as a setting for William Williams' text "Guide Me, O Thou Great ...
,
Sospan Fach,
Land of My Fathers
"" () is the official national anthem of Wales. The title, taken from the first words of the song, means "Old Land of My Fathers" in Welsh, usually rendered in English as simply "Land of My Fathers". The words were written by Evan James and ...
and then
God Save the King
"God Save the King" is the national anthem, national and/or royal anthem of the United Kingdom, most of the Commonwealth realms, their territories, and the British Crown Dependencies. The author of the tune is unknown and it may originate in ...
, to which the All Blacks responded with a "weird chant led by Nēpia".
But as fame of their unbeaten status spread, so did the status of their haka. At the beginning of their 22nd game in Wales at Llanelli, we read
On the appearance of the men in red, 'Sosban Fach' was sung with great enthusiasm. Nēpia then led the All Blacks in their famous war dance, which was very impressive. One could almost hear a pin drop while it was rendered. The crowd again sang 'Sosban Fach' in reply.
The haka in ''Finnegans Wake''
Irish writer
James Joyce
James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important writers of ...
heard the "Ko Niu Tireni" haka performed at the Invincibles' match at Paris in January 1925. He modified some of the words and used them in his word-play novel ''
Finnegans Wake
''Finnegans Wake'' is a novel by Irish literature, Irish writer James Joyce. It is well known for its experimental style and reputation as one of the most difficult works of fiction in the Western canon. It has been called "a work of fiction whi ...
''.
''Let us propel us for the frey of the fray! Us, us, beraddy!''
''Ko Niutirenis hauru leish! A lala!''
''Ko Niutirenis haururu laleish! Ala lala!''
''The Wullingthund sturm is breaking.''
''The sound of maormaoring''
''The Wellingthund sturm waxes fuercilier.''
''Finnegans Wake'', 2nd ed. 1950, Book II chap iii, page 335.
"Kapa o Pango" 2005
Overview
Before a
Tri Nations match against South Africa on 27 August 2005 at
Carisbrook
Carisbrook (sometimes incorrectly referred to as Carisbrook Stadium) was a major sporting venue in Dunedin, New Zealand. The city's main domestic and international rugby union venue, it was also used for other sports such as cricket, football, ...
in Dunedin, the All Blacks unexpectedly introduced a new haka, "Kapa o Pango". It featured an extended and aggressive introduction by team captain
Tana Umaga
Jonathan Ionatana Falefasa Umaga (; ; born 27 May 1973) is a New Zealand former rugby union footballer and former captain of the national team, the All Blacks. Since 2016 he has been coach of the Blues in the Super Rugby competition.
He played ...
highlighted by a drawing of the thumb down the throat. This was interpreted by many as a "throat-slitting" action directed at the opposing team. The All Blacks went on to win the match 31 to 27.
The words to "Kapa o Pango" are more specific to the rugby team than "Ka Mate", referring to the warriors in black and the silver fern.
The new haka was developed by
Derek Lardelli
Sir Derek Arana Te Ahi Lardelli (born 1961) is a New Zealand tā moko artist, painter, carver, kapahaka performer, composer, graphic designer, researcher of whakapapa and oral histories and kaikōrero. He affiliates to the Ngāti Konohi hapū o ...
of
Ngāti Porou
Ngāti Porou is a Māori iwi traditionally located in the East Cape and Gisborne regions of the North Island of New Zealand. Ngāti Porou is affiliated with the 28th Maori Battalion and has the second-largest affiliation of any iwi in New Zealand ...
by modifying the first verse of "Ko Niu Tirini," the haka used by the 1924 All Blacks. An NZRU press release stated that
Kapa o Pango has been over a year in the making, and was created in consultation with many experts in Māori culture. It will serve as a complement to "Ka Mate" rather than a replacement, to be used for 'special occasions'.
Published words and the NZRU explanation
Words chanted on field, and their literal interpretation
The words of both "Kapa o Pango" and "Ko Niu Tireni" are taken from the haka of the earthquake god Ruaumoko, ''Ko Ruaumoko e ngunguru nei.'' The lines beginning ''Ka tū te ihi-ihi...'' are found in many old haka. ''Ponga ra, ponga ra'' is the opening line of 'Te Kiri Ngutu,' an 1880s lament for stolen territory.
Responses and controversies
The haka, while normally enjoyed by spectators, has been criticised as an unsporting attempt to intimidate the opposition before the match begins. However, most teams accept that the haka is part of rugby's heritage and face up to the All Blacks during its performance, with both teams standing about 10 metres apart. The 2007 Portuguese Rugby team Captain
Vasco Uva
Vasco Maria Nunes Barata de Sousa Uva (born 15 December 1982 in Lisbon) is a former Portuguese rugby union player. He played as a number eight.
He took his law degree at the Catholic University of Portugal, in Lisbon, and he works as a lawye ...
said of the haka that "
efaced it, gave it the respect it deserved and it gave us motivation and we knew if it gave them strength, it was also a point of strength for us."
Ignoring the haka is a tactic sometimes used by opposing teams. Famously, the
Australian rugby team did a warm up drill well away from the All Blacks during their 1996 test match in Wellington. More recently, the
Italian rugby team ignored the haka during a 2007 World Cup Pool Match. All Black team member,
Keven Mealamu
Keven Filipo Mealamu (born 20 March 1979) is a former New Zealand rugby union footballer. He played at hooker for the Blues in Super Rugby, Auckland in the National Provincial Championship, and the New Zealand national team. He was a key membe ...
, said later that in his opinion the snub had backfired and provided motivation to his team.
Australian back
David Campese
David Ian Campese, AM (born 21 October 1962), also known as Campo, is a former Australian rugby union player (1982-1996), who was capped by the Wallabies 101 times, and played 85 Tests at wing and 16 at fullback. He retired in 1996 and was aw ...
often ignored the haka, most notably in the
1991 World Cup semi-final victory over the All Blacks, when he chose to practice warm-up drills instead of facing the All Blacks.
In 1989, as the All Blacks were performing the haka in
Lansdowne Road
Lansdowne Road Stadium ( ga, Bóthar Lansdún, ) was a stadium in Dublin owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) that was primarily used for rugby union and association football matches. The stadium was demolished in 2007 to make way for ...
before playing
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
, the Irish lined up in a tight V formation to facing New Zealand and then edged closer and closer to the All Blacks. By the time the end of the haka came, captain
Willie Anderson was only inches from Buck Shelford's face.
In 1997,
Richard Cockerill
Richard Cockerill (born 16 December 1970) is an English rugby union coach and former player, he was the national team's interim head coach between Eddie Jones and Steve Borthwick. He played as a hooker, spending the majority of his career at ...
was disciplined for responding to the haka before the start of an
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
vs.
All Blacks
The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987 ...
game. Cockerill went toe-to-toe with his opposite number Norm Hewitt while they performed the haka. The referee became so concerned that Hewitt and Cockerill would begin fighting that he pushed Cockerill away from Hewitt. Cockerill went on to say afterwards "I believe that I did the right thing that day," he said. "They were throwing down a challenge and I showed them I was ready to accept it. I'm sure they would rather we did that than walk away." In recent times when the haka is performed against England, it is often drowned out by England fans singing "
Swing Low, Sweet Chariot
"Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" is an African-American spiritual song and one of the best-known Christian hymns. Originating in early oral and musical African-American traditions, the date it was composed is unknown. Performances by the Hampton Singer ...
", causing critics to demand respect towards the cultural symbol.
In 2005, Australian rugby league player
Willie Mason
Viliami William Marshall Mason (born 15 April 1980), also nicknamed "Big Willie", is a former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 2000s and 2010s. An Australia and Tonga international and New South Wales State of Origin rep ...
was caught on camera swearing at New Zealand full back
Brent Webb
Brent Douglas Webb (born 9 November 1979) is a former New Zealand national rugby league team, New Zealand international rugby league footballer who played as a . He previously played for the New Zealand Warriors in the National Rugby League, ...
during the haka before a
Rugby League Tri-Nations
The Rugby League Tri-Nations (known as the Gillette Tri-Nations for sponsorship reasons) was a rugby league tournament involving the top three teams in the sport: Australia, Great Britain and New Zealand and is the predecessor of today's Rugby ...
match in Auckland. Mason states he was taking exception to Webb, who was born in
Cairns, Queensland
Cairns (, ) is a city in Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. The population in June 2019 was 153,952, having grown on average 1.02% annually over the preceding five years. The city is the 5th-most-p ...
, Australia performing the traditional haka.
In 2005, the All Blacks agreed to a request from the
Welsh Rugby Union
The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU; cy, Undeb Rygbi Cymru) is the Sports governing body, governing body of rugby union in the country of Wales, recognised by the sport's international governing body, World Rugby.
The WRU is responsible for the running ...
to repeat the sequence of events from the original match a century before in 1905. This involved the All Blacks performing the haka after "
God Defend New Zealand
"God Defend New Zealand" (, meaning 'New Zealand') is one of two national anthems of New Zealand, the other being "God Save the King". Legally the two have equal status, but "God Defend New Zealand" is more commonly used. Originally written as a ...
" and before "
Hen Wlad fy Nhadau
"" () is the official national anthem of Wales. The title, taken from the first words of the song, means "Old Land of My Fathers" in Welsh, usually rendered in English as simply "Land of My Fathers". The words were written by Evan James and ...
". For the November 2006 test, the Welsh Rugby Union demanded a repeat of this sequence. The All Blacks refused, and instead chose to perform the haka in their changing room before the match. All Blacks captain
Richie McCaw
Richard Hugh McCaw (born 31 December 1980) is a retired New Zealand professional rugby union player. He captained the national team, the All Blacks, in 110 out of his 148 test matches, and won two Rugby World Cups. He has won the World Rugby ...
defended the decision by stating that the haka was "integral to New Zealand culture and the All Blacks' heritage" and "if the other team wants to mess around, we'll just do the haka in the shed". The crowd reacted negatively to the lack of the haka and then being shown brief footage of the haka on the screens at the
Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm y Mileniwm), known since 2016 as the Principality Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Principality) for sponsorship reasons, is the national stadium of Wales. Located in Cardiff, it is the home of the Wales national rug ...
.
In 2006, the
Seven Network
The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, and is one of ...
TV channel in Australia aired a commercial which used digital enhancement to add handbags to video of New Zealand rugby players performing the haka.
This was inspired by an incident when former All Black captain
Tana Umaga
Jonathan Ionatana Falefasa Umaga (; ; born 27 May 1973) is a New Zealand former rugby union footballer and former captain of the national team, the All Blacks. Since 2016 he has been coach of the Blues in the Super Rugby competition.
He played ...
struck
Hurricanes
A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...
teammate
Chris Masoe
Chris Masoe (born 15 May 1979 in Savaii, Western Samoa) is a former New Zealand rugby union footballer, who last played for Racing Metro 92 in the Top 14 and a current professional boxer. He is the brother of boxer Maselino Masoe. He was born ...
over the head with a woman's handbag after the
Super 14 final.
[
] All Blacks assistant coach
Wayne Smith criticised the advertisement, saying "It is insensitive, I think, to Māori and disrespectful of the All Blacks".
[
]
The "Kapa o Pango" haka created controversy when the
gesture of a thumb drawn down the throat was interpreted by many observers as implying throat slitting. The All Blacks and Māori interpreted it as drawing the breath of life into the heart and lungs ("''hauora''"). This led to calls for it to be banned,
although a poll conducted in July 2006 showed 60 percent support in New Zealand.
During
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
's
tour of New Zealand
The Women's Tour of New Zealand is a stage race
A race stage, leg, or heat is a unit of a race that has been divided in several parts for the reason such as length of the distance to be covered, as in a multi-day event. Usually, such a race co ...
, the
NZRU put the haka on a temporary hiatus, to review its appropriateness, by asking the All Blacks not to perform it against Ireland.
In the 2007 Rugby World Cup quarter-finals, France, after having won the coin toss for the choice of uniforms, famously wore the blue/white/red of the French flag and walked up to within a metre of the haka performance, forming a line of opposition to the performance by the All Blacks, who were wearing a predominantly silver uniform (as opposed to the traditional all black). France went on to beat the All Blacks 20–18.
In the 2008 Rugby Autumn Tests, Wales responded to the haka by standing on the pitch refusing to move until the All Blacks did. This resulted in the referee Jonathan Kaplan berating both teams for a full two minutes after the haka had ended until eventually New Zealand captain McCaw instructed his team to break off. After a spirited first half display which ended with Wales leading 9–6, the All Blacks responded positively and won the game 9–29.
Following the final of the 2011 World Cup, the French national team was fined by the
IRB for marching to within 10 metres of their All Black opponents during the performance of the haka. To many, this has been viewed as an insult from the IRB.
In the 2019 Rugby World Cup semi-finals, England fanned out across the pitch and adopted a V-shaped formation before the All Blacks began their Haka. As the All Blacks delivered the challenge, several English players crossed the halfway line and stood their ground when officials tried to usher them back. After the match, the IRB issued England with a fine of £2,000 for having have breached World Cup 2019 rules relating to cultural challenges, which states that no players from the team receiving the challenge may advance beyond the halfway line. England went on to win the match 19–7, advancing to meet South Africa in the final, which they would lose 32–12.
Use after matches
New Zealand national sports teams have occasionally performed the haka (usually Ka Mate) as part of their victory celebrations after winning matches. This is not done as a challenge or sign of triumph over the opposing team, but is instead directed at fans and other spectators as a thank you for support. The haka is also occasionally performed in this context to honour individual players achieving important career milestones. This habit is particularly prevalent for the
New Zealand national rugby sevens team
The New Zealand national rugby sevens team competes in the World Rugby Sevens Series, Rugby World Cup Sevens, Summer Olympic Games and the Commonwealth Games. They have won a record twelve World Rugby Sevens Series titles. The team has been of ...
.
Use by other teams
Other New Zealand sports teams have similarly performed the haka before a match. The tradition of performing a haka before every test match is just as strong with the Kiwis, the
New Zealand national rugby league team
The New Zealand national rugby league team (Māori: Tīma rīki motu Aotearoa) has represented New Zealand in rugby league since 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of ...
, performing it before every game. Traditionally they performed the "Ka Mate" haka, but starting at the
2013 Rugby League World Cup
The 2013 Rugby League World Cup was the fourteenth staging of the Rugby League World Cup and took place in England, Wales, France and Ireland. between 26 October and 30 November 2013.
It was the main event of the year's 2013 Festival of World ...
they perform a team-specific haka called "Te Iwi Kiwi". It is also performed by the
Australian rules football team and
Tall Blacks
The New Zealand men's national basketball team is the senior men's national basketball team of New Zealand. The team is nicknamed the Tall Blacks. The ''Tall Blacks'' name is one of many New Zealand national team nicknames related to the All ...
. The
New Zealand Māori have performed the 'Timatanga' haka since 2001. In the documentary ''
Murderball'', the New Zealand paralympic rugby team can be seen performing a modified version of the haka.
When
Munster
Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following the ...
hosted the All Blacks at
Thomond Park
Thomond Park is a stadium in Limerick in the Irish province of Munster. The stadium is owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union and has Munster Rugby, Shannon RFC and UL Bohemian RFC as tenants. Limerick FC played home games in Thomond Park fr ...
, Limerick in November 2008, the four New Zealand players in the Munster team performed their own haka prior to the All Blacks.
At the opening parade of the
2002 Commonwealth Games
The 2002 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XVII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Manchester 2002 were held in Manchester, England, from 25 July to 4 August, 2002. The 2002 Games were to be hosted in the United Kingdom to coin ...
in Manchester, the New Zealand team
stopped in front of the
Queen
Queen or QUEEN may refer to:
Monarchy
* Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom
** List of queens regnant
* Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king
* Queen dowager, the widow of a king
* Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...
and performed a haka.
New Zealand teams have attracted some criticism for performing the haka,
on occasions such as winning a swim relay bronze medal.
In 2009,
Ice Blacks did their haka before their ice hockey match against Australia. The
Tall Blacks
The New Zealand men's national basketball team is the senior men's national basketball team of New Zealand. The team is nicknamed the Tall Blacks. The ''Tall Blacks'' name is one of many New Zealand national team nicknames related to the All ...
performed the dance prior to its games in the 2014 FIBA tournament, including a contest against the United States, where video of the dance was widely circulated and sparked discussion.
The
Black Sticks, the (field) hockey team, also perform a haka.
During the 2013 PDC World Cup of Darts, team New Zealand, consisting of Phillip Hazel and Craig Caldwell performed the Haka ahead of their match against Australia.
The high-profile of the All Blacks, and their use of the haka has led other Pacific teams to use similar dances from their own cultures, such as the
Cibi
The Cibi () is a Fijian meke of Bauan origin and war dance, generally performed before or after a battle. It came to prominence in the rugby field in 1939 when it was performed by the Fiji national rugby union team before the match. It is also kno ...
,
Kailao
The kailao is a cultural dance from the South Pacific country of Tonga. It originates from Wallis and Futuna.
History
The kailao originated on the island collectivity of Wallis and Futuna, where it is still performed in public ceremonies. In Tong ...
, and
Siva tau __NOTOC__
The Manu Siva Tau is a Samoan war dance, performed by the Samoan sporting teams before each match.
The national rugby union team used to perform the traditional 'Maulu'ulu Moa' on tour. Prior to the 1991 World Cup, the 'Manu' war cha ...
. Other teams from the Pacific and elsewhere however have performed the "
Ka Mate
"Ka Mate" () is a Māori haka composed by Te Rauparaha, war leader of the Ngāti Toa tribe of the North Island of New Zealand.
Composition
Te Rauparaha composed "Ka Mate" circa 1820 as a celebration of life over death after his lucky escape from ...
" or "
Kapa o Pango
Kapa o Pango is a pre-match Haka (sports), haka, or challenge, composed by Derek Lardelli, which is unique to the New Zealand national rugby union team, the All Blacks. Since 2005, the "Kapa o Pango" haka has been performed before Test match (rugb ...
" haka. For instance, the "Kapa o Pango" haka was used by the
University of Hawaii Warriors in 2006, before they created their own war dance, the "Haa", in the
Hawaiian language
Hawaiian (', ) is a Polynesian language of the Austronesian language family that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language o ...
with original movements.
See also
*
Haka in popular culture
The haka is a traditional Māori dance form. The use of haka in popular culture is a growing phenomenon, originally from New Zealand. Traditionally, haka were used only in Māori cultural contexts, but today haka are used in a wide range of occa ...
*
Kapa haka
Kapa haka is the term for Māori action songs and the groups who perform them. It literally means 'group' () and 'dance' (). Kapa haka is an important avenue for Māori people to express and showcase their heritage and cultural Polynesian identi ...
*
Māori music Traditional Māori music, or pūoro Māori, is composed or performed by Māori people, Māori, the indigenous people of New Zealand, and includes a wide variety of folk music styles, often integrated with poetry and dance.
In addition to these trad ...
* Traditional war dances of other rugby nations:
**
Cibi
The Cibi () is a Fijian meke of Bauan origin and war dance, generally performed before or after a battle. It came to prominence in the rugby field in 1939 when it was performed by the Fiji national rugby union team before the match. It is also kno ...
(Fiji)
**
Hako (Rapa Nui) (Easter Island)
**
Kailao
The kailao is a cultural dance from the South Pacific country of Tonga. It originates from Wallis and Futuna.
History
The kailao originated on the island collectivity of Wallis and Futuna, where it is still performed in public ceremonies. In Tong ...
or Sipi Tau (Tonga)
**
Siva tau __NOTOC__
The Manu Siva Tau is a Samoan war dance, performed by the Samoan sporting teams before each match.
The national rugby union team used to perform the traditional 'Maulu'ulu Moa' on tour. Prior to the 1991 World Cup, the 'Manu' war cha ...
(Samoa)
**
Aboriginal war dance
Ceremonial dancing has a very important place in the Indigenous cultures of Australia. They vary from place to place, but most ceremonies combine dance, song, rituals and often elaborate body decorations and costumes. The different body paintings i ...
(Australia)
Notes
References
*M. Pōmare, 'Ngāti Toarangatira', ''Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand'', updated 9 June 2006. URL
www.TeAra.govt.nzThe Haka – In the Beginning, New Zealand Rugby Museum.
External links
Haka!– Haka Sports site.
– website New Zealand in History
{{Supporter Culture
Rugby league in New Zealand
Rugby union in New Zealand
Haka
Māori language
Rugby football culture
Sports culture
Sports culture in New Zealand