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Story: Traditional Māori games – ngā tākaro

A game of kī-o-Rahi

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A game of kī-o-Rahi

A group plays kī-o-Rahi, a fast-paced contact sport that uses a circular field. Games are played between a defending 'taniwha' team and an attacking 'kīoma' team. Teams score points by touching the tupu (central marker) with the ball.  Rules vary from place to place, and the game can be played as a touch or tackle sport. Kī-o-Rahi is derived from ball games played in circular clearings before Europeans arrived in New Zealand. 

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How to cite this page

Ross Calman, Traditional Māori games – ngā tākaro – Suppression and revival, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/39363/a-game-of-ki-o-rahi (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Ross Calman, published 30 November 2012.