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Haka in popular culture

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An animation of an amateur New Zealand rugby team performing the Haka in Trafalgar Square in London, England

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 occasions.

Sports[edit]

New Zealand sports teams[edit]

For over 100 years the All Blacks have had a tradition of performing a haka before games. This has become the most widely known use of the haka, but several other New Zealand sports teams now perform the haka before commencing a game. These include rugby league (the Kiwis),[1] basketball (Tall Blacks),[2] and wheelchair rugby (Wheel Blacks).[3]

In addition to this planned, formalised usage, teams and supporters now often perform impromptu haka as a celebration or encouragement.[4] At the Sydney Olympics in 2000 these uses of the haka were numerous enough to draw some negative comment.[5][6]

Use by non-New Zealand sports teams[edit]

A number of sports teams outside of New Zealand have adopted the haka, most notably the American football teams of Brigham Young University, University of Hawaii and Trinity High School in Euless, Texas as well as the Highland Rugby Team. Both the Coventry Jets and the London Olympians, British American Football teams, have, on occasions, performed the haka before their games. Both squads have had a large number of Polynesian players over the past 5 years.

Military[edit]

The haka is performed by members of the New Zealand Defence Force as a show of solidarity such as during funerals of fallen comrades.[7] All three services have their own haka. The New Zealand Army has a haka composed specifically for them called Tu Taua a Tumatauenga.

Other[edit]

The music video for the Pātea Māori Club's song Poi E in 1983 (written by Dalvanius Prime and Ngoi Pēwhairangi) used a mixture of kapa haka and hip-hop choreography. This song was number one on New Zealand music charts for four weeks in 1984. Poi E was then choreographed by Dolina Wehipeihana as the outro song parody for Taika Waititi's movie Boy (2010) referencing Michael Jackson's Thriller music video.[8][9][10]

There was a craze in 2011 in the lead up to the Rugby World Cup where flashmob hakas became a popular way of expressing support for the All Blacks. Some Maori leaders thought it was "inappropriate" and a "bastardisation" of the traditional war cry,[11] despite its popularity. Sizeable flashmob hakas were performed in Wellington[12] and Auckland,[13] as well as London, which has a large Kiwi expat community.[14]

In November 2012, a Maori kapa haka group from Rotorua performed a version of the "Gangnam Style" dance mixed with a traditional Maori haka in Seoul, celebrating 50 years of diplomatic relations between South Korea and New Zealand.[15]

In 2020, Māori actors Rob Kipa-Williams, Ethan Browne, and Kawakawa Fox-Reo performed a haka in the Australian soap opera Home and Away, a first for the serial.[16]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. Burgess, Michael (31 October 2018). "Rugby League: Kiwis perform haka for Liverpool football players". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 17 November 2018.
  2. "New Zealand haka war dance bewilders USA basketball team". The Guardian. 4 September 2014. Retrieved 17 November 2018.
  3. Palmer, Curtis (September 11, 2008). "Time heals". OneSport. Retrieved 2008-09-16. September 5: Haka and honours
  4. "Sports Leaders of the year: Moss Burmester". The New Zealand Herald. 9 December 2006. Retrieved 12 September 2011.
  5. Eves, Tim (18 March 2006). "Now it's a new haka for every sport". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 12 September 2011.
  6. "Kiwis deny overdoing haka at Games". The Sydney Morning Herald. 21 March 2006. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
  7. "Soldiers' farewell haka footage goes viral". The New Zealand Herald. 28 August 2012.
  8. Powell, Jacob. "Review: Poi E: The Story of Our Song". Pantograph Punch. Retrieved 2023-01-06.
  9. Kara, Scott. "Poi Story 2 - Entertainment News". NZ Herald. Retrieved 2023-01-06.
  10. Cooper, Tracey (2012-05-16). "Dolina does dance". Stuff. Retrieved 2023-01-06.
  11. "Maori leaders at odds over flash mob haka". 3 News NZ. September 20, 2011. Archived from the original on December 27, 2011. Retrieved November 29, 2012. Unknown parameter |url-status= ignored (help)
  12. "Wellington haka attracts hundreds". 3 News NZ. September 8, 2011. Archived from the original on August 21, 2014. Retrieved November 29, 2012. Unknown parameter |url-status= ignored (help)
  13. "Flash mob haka on Auckland's Queen Street ahead of RWC opener All Blacks vs Tonga". 3 News NZ. September 9, 2011.
  14. "Flashmob haka takes over Trafalgar Square". 3 News NZ. November 19, 2011. Archived from the original on August 21, 2014. Retrieved November 29, 2012. Unknown parameter |url-status= ignored (help)
  15. "Maori take on Gangnam Style in Korea". 3 News NZ. November 30, 2012. Archived from the original on January 12, 2013. Retrieved November 29, 2012. Unknown parameter |url-status= ignored (help)
  16. Vrajlal, Alicia (9 July 2020). "Home And Away Featuring The Maori Haka Is More Than Just A Nod To On-Screen Diversity". HuffPost. Retrieved 17 March 2023.


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