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Kōrero: Barrett, Huiatahi

Whārangi 1: Haurongo

Barrett, Huiatahi

1873/1874?–1952

Nō Ngāti Maniapoto; he kaiārahi

I tuhia tēnei haurongo e Tutahanga Douglas, ā, i tāngia tuatahitia ki Ngā Tāngata Taumata Rau i te 1998. He mea whakamāori nā Ngā Tangata Taumata Rau.

Nō te tau 1873, 1874 rānei, i whānau ai a Huiatahi Barrett ki Waiharakeke, wāhi o Kāwhia. He Ingarihi tōna koroua, a Nathaniel Barrett, ā, nō te tekau tau atu i 1840 i tae mai ai ki Aotearoa nei. Ko tāna mahi, he whakaako tamariki i te whaitua o Kāwhia, ā, nō muri i tāpiritia atu ai e ia ki tana mahi whakaako tētehi mahi pāmu itiiti noa nei, hei whakapiki ake i tōna oranga. I te tau 1849, ka moea e ia a Caroline Te Maawe Newha o Ngāti Maniapoto, ā, whānau ana a Thomas Te Murunga Barrett, ko ia te matua o Huiatahi, i te tau 1852. Tokowhitu katoa ngā tamariki a Nathaniel rāua ko Caroline, he mea whakatupu tonu mai i te taha o te whānau o tōna whaea i Waiharakeke. Nōna e taiohinga ana he kaikiri nō Waikato, i haere ai a Te Murunga ki Taranaki. Ko āna mahi i reira, he parakimete hū hōiho, he kaimahi pāmu. Rua tekau noa nei ōna tau ka hoki mai ia ki te kāinga. Hei tā tōna whānau, kua tangata hākoke kē a Huiatahi, kua kore kē he moni. Ahakoa tēnei, whakawhaiāipotia ana e ia a Pareārohi Wiriwiri, te tamāhine a Tūtūnui Te Kanawa (ko Tangi Te Hau tētehi o ōna īngoa) o Ngāti Uekaha, moe atu ana rāua. Ko Huiatahi noa tā rāua huatahi, ā, ko tōna īngoa anō ko Te Pioi Pareārohi. Tokorua anō ngā wāhine a Thomas. Ko Ērena tētehi; kotahi tā rāua tamāhine, ko Okioki te īngoa. Ko te wahine tuatoru ko Te Mamae Whakamau Wirihana (Wilson).

I tupu ake a Huiatahi ki roto i te reo me ngā tikanga a Ngāti Uekaha rātou ko Ngāti Maniapoto. He wāhi nui tonu nei tō tōna koroua ki te taha o tōna whaea, tō Tūtūnui Te Kanawa i te whakatūnga o Pōtatau Te Wherowhero ki te tūranga o te Kīngi Māori tuatahi. He wahine piri tōna whaea ki te whakapono Pai Mārire, ā, he tohunga rongonui hoki. I kō atu i tērā ko ia tētehi o ngā wāhine ruarua e āhei ana ki te tū ki te whaikōrero i te marae. Nāwai rā, mau ana i a Huiatahi ngā kawenga kaihautū a tōna whaea. I a ia e tamariki ana, i rite tonu te tonoa atu ōna, mai i tōna kāinga i Waitomo ki Taranaki me Waiharakeke, noho ai mō tētehi wā i te taha o ngā whanaunga o tōna matua.

I a Huiatahi ka pakeke ake nei kua tae kē a Ngāti Maniapoto ki tētehi taumata whakaritenga, whakaaro noa ki te ao Pākehā. Heoi anō, mau piri tonu a Ngāti Maniapoto ki te Kīngitanga, tūpato tonu ai ki te kāwanatanga nāna nei i muru ngā whenua o ō rātou whanaunga o Waikato. Ahakoa tonu, nō te tau 1883, i oti i a rātou ko te kāwanatanga he kawenata, whakaaetia ana te haere o te rerewē matua mā ō rātou whenua i te Rohe Pōtae, ā, whakaaetia ana hoki kia tuaina ā rātou rākau, anā kē te maha. I a ia ka taiohi nei i noho tonu a Huiatahi i te pāmu a tōna whānau mahi ai. Tērā atu anō ngā mahi whai herengi āna, e kaimahi ana i ngā pāmu, i ngā mira, tae atu ki te mahi parakimete. I tēnei wā ka akona ia ki te tākaro mekemeke nei, ā, autaia tonu. I tohunga anō hoki ia ki te mau taiaha, ā, nō muri mai, ka hau nei tōna rongo hei tohunga taiaha ki ngā taitama o Ngāti Maniapoto, whakaako ai i a rātou ki te mau rākau. I whakaakona anō hoki rātou e ia ki te mekemeke.

Nā te mea i huatahi, i whakaarotia me tohunga rawa a Huiatahi ki ngā tini mahi a te Māori rāua ko te Pākehā. Kāti, noho ake ana te tangata nei hei pātaka whakapapa, hei puna kōrero mō ngā kōrero tuku iho mō tōna iwi. Hei pou tokomanawa anō hoki ia mō te Hāhi Pai Mārire, e hāpai ana i ngā tikanga a te Hāhi, me tana whakahauhau i te tangata ki te karakia ia rā, ia rā, me te ako anō hoki i te Paipera. I uru atu a Huiatahi hei mema mō ngā komiti marae o Pōhatuiri me Ōtorohanga, me te Kaunihera Māori ā-Rohe o Maniapoto (Maniapoto District Māori Council) hoki. He mea tautoko tonu e Huiatahi ngā mahi whakaakoako pakeke Māori; ka riro hoki nāna i whakahaere ētehi kura waiata. Ko tana wahine tuatahi ko Raumīria; kotahi tā rāua tamāhine, ko Rangimaemae.

Muri iho ka moea e Huiatahi a Huihana Parehuiroro Tana (Turner) o Ngāti Kinohaku me Ngāti Rora. I noho rātou ko tā rāua whānau ki Pōhatuiri, e tata ana ki ngā ana o Waitomo. Tekau mā rua ā rāua tamariki, ā, kotahi anō te tamaiti a Huiatahi, he wahine kē tōna whaea. Ka tipu nei āna tamariki, ka puta mai ngā mokopuna, noho tonu ana ko Huiatahi rāua ko Huihana hei kokoro, hei kuikui rānei, arā hei, kaumātua mō te whaitua o Waitomo.

Te āhua nei e 50 noa tōna pakeke i aituā nei ōna whatu, matapō tonu atu. Ahakoa mutu ake tana kaha ki te mahi moni, i mau tonu i a rāua ko tana wahine te mahi whakatipu, mahi tiaki, mahi hauhake kai i tā rāua māra, ia rā, ia wā o te tau. Ka noho tonu te koroua nei hei rangatira mō Ngāti Uekaha, hei waha kōrero hoki mō Ngāti Maniapoto. Nō taua wā i uru atu ia ki roto i te Hāhi Rātana, ā, whakawahia ana ia hei āpotoro i te tau 1925.

I mate a Huiatahi Barrett i te 27 o Oketopa i te tau 1952 i Waitomo. Mahue ake ana tana hoa rangatira me ā rāua tamariki e ora ana, tokowhā nei ngā mea tāne, tokotoru ngā mea wāhine. I tōna wā ko te koroua nei te whakatinanatanga o tēnei mea o te rangatira. I arohaina ia e ōna hapū, whakanuitia ana ia e ngā kaihautū hapori o iwi kē. He tohunga whaikōrero, ko ia he taonga, he puna kōrero mō te whakapapa me ngā kōrero tuku iho a tōna iwi, a Ngāti Maniapoto.

Me pēnei te tohu i te whārangi:

Tutahanga Douglas. 'Barrett, Huiatahi', Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, first published in 1998. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/mi/biographies/4b7/barrett-huiatahi (accessed 29 March 2024)