Matariki 2025: A Little History and Lots of Ways to Celebrate

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Ata mārie/good morning, here in 2025 Aotearoa New Zealand, we celebrate Matariki on Friday 20th June, with a national holiday, that gives people the opportunity to celebrate the Maori New Year.

Before I talk about some ways that you might like to spend your Matariki Holiday, here’s a little information about my understanding of Matariki and what it means to Maori.

Traditionally it was celebrated by Maori after they harvested their crops and filled their winter store houses. The festivities were a way to give thanks for the harvest, acknowledge and honour their dead and ancestors, as well as a time to celebrate life.

Matariki also signals the end of another year for Maori, and the brightness of the Matariki stars are believed to signal how abundant the next year’s harvest will be, with bright stars indicating success and hazy stars warning of poorer crops and weather.

If you’d like to celebrate Matariki with more than just a day off work and school, here are some ideas you might like to think about and prepare for…

CREATE AN ALTAR…

• Prepare an altar, lighting a candle and reflecting on the past year, and remembering loved ones who have passed.

• Celebrate your wins from the past year.

• Record your aspirations and dreams for the year ahead.

DAYTIME ACTIVITIES…

• You could plant a tree or prepare your veggie garden for new planting.

• A potluck lunch with family and friends.

• Make a kite with your tamariki/children, as kites are a traditional Matariki pastime.

EVENING ACTIVITIES…

• If you have a brazier or other means of creating a fire, you might like to sit around it and tell stories of ancestors or whanau/family history, as well as play games.

• A potluck dinner with family and friends.

• Sing songs together.

• Perhaps a bit of stargazing with the tamariki/children, to see if you can spot Matariki (if the weather plays ball).

ATTEND PALMY’S PUANGA-MATARIKI FESTIVAL FROM 3PM TO 7PM…

• If you’d like to be part of a wider community event, you could attend the Puanga-Matariki Festival, a joint venture between Rangitāne o Manawatu and the PNCC.

• Last year over 8,000 people from all walks of life attended, and organisers are expecting even more this year.

• There will be a line-up of local performers, kapa haka groups and waiata, as well as an array of local food trucks, craft stalls and activities for Tamariki.

• If you’d like more information, here’s a link to the festival page…

• Celebrate the Māori new year at Palmy’s Puanga-Matariki festival | Palmerston North City Council

And if you’d like to include a little retail therapy, Inspire Me will be open from 12pm to 4pm.