For Maori who don’t fit neatly into carefully constructed moulds of gender and sexuality the term takatāpui can be a relief.
Scholar Elizabeth Kerekere argues that pre-colonial Maori were sexually experimental people who openly accepted gender and sexual fluidity.
Anyone who didn’t fit into heterosexuality was considered “takatāpui”.
Kerekere, who identifies as lesbian, has spent five years writing her PhD and discovering new evidence takatāpui existed in pre-colonial society. It was released recently at Victoria University.
Now she’s on a mission to normalise the term and create acceptance for LGBTQ Maori.
“Takatāpui were part of the whanau, we were not separate, we were not put down, we were not vilified for just being who we are,” Kerekere says.
Other Polynesian cultures have similar concepts for non-binary people like the fa’afafine of Samoa, the māhū of Hawaii, and the fakaleiti of Tonga.
Kerekere, 51, says the story of takatāpui can be seen in chief Wiremu Maihi Te Rangikāheke’s telling of the famous Maori love story between Hinemoa and Tūtānekai. In Te Rangikāheke’s version when Tūtānekai falls in love and marries Hinemoa, he laments the loss of his intimate relationship with a man named Tiki, his hoa takatāpui.
Kerekere says the fact they were sexually intimate was pretty obvious.
“Some people say that’s not sexual but then what do you think ‘intimate’ means?”
Maori were sex positive before colonisation. This can be seen in stories and songs, Kerekere tells the Herald, like the waiata about an elder woman singing about how her vagina used to travel the country.
“Sex was a normal part of life. There was a lot of pride in skill. If you wanted to have sex you should be good at it.”
Kerekere’s thesis cites the story of missionary William Yates being sent home to England for engaging in mutual masturbation and fellatio with more than 100 young Maori men. What was interesting was that in the court news it said “the Maori weren’t ashamed and did not believe anything to be wrong”, Kerekere says.
“He was just a massive embarrassment to the Church because everywhere he went he kept doing it.
“The key thing was that it was accepted by Maori.”
As English culture spread to Maori, sexual freedom was stamped out, Kerekere says. Women and children were seen as the chattel of men and subservient.
“Colonisation changed everything – our expression of sexuality, women having control of their own body, female leadership.
“We lost all of that, having fluidity, being polyamorous … our sexuality was stolen.”
Kerekere analysed 150 proverbs on gender, relationships and sex for her thesis. She drew and painted them to find patterns in their imagery. Fire and “talking in the night” were common metaphors for sex, she says.
It was when she found the whakatauki (proverb) “Nga korero ahiahi o Hinewha” which literally translates as “the night-time talks between women”. After looking at other metaphors Kerekere believes it actually means sex between two or more women.
“’Talking in the evening’ often was an allusion to sex. When you see all these other examples and in each one it means sex, that means this one also means sex.
“You couldn’t have sex during the day, that means you’re lazy. There’s lots of whakatauki about sex at night.
“It’s the first new proof of takatāpui in decades. When I found it I was crazy excited.”
Kerekere believed she had found two other whakatauki, one alluding to polyamorous male relationships and another a female polyamorous one.
Rainbow Youth have recently released their second resource on takatāpui called Growing up Takatāpui: Whānau Journeys to engage families in their child’s journey.
Communications manager Toni Duder said it was key to use the concept as a way to honour Maori culture and their ideas around gender and sexuality.
“Using the word takatāpui says you’re significant, this is a part of your Maoriness, be comfortable with who you are.
“Being Maori and having diverse gender or sexuality, these things aren’t in conflict. They’re actually really compatible.”
Tag: te reo maori
is it pronounced like an (American) English speaker would pronounce those syllables? KEE-ah OR-ah? do I need to do anything specific with the R?
I’m just gonna direct you to the Māori dictionary and its example, this radio interview on Māori pronunciation, and this page of common greetings with recordings of their pronunciation, but I would write it as something like “kyaAWErah”. “R” in Māori is…IDK the technical linguistic terms, but sort of halfway to a “l” sound, much like in Japanese. It’s distinctly different from most English versions of “r”.
(I mean, nobody’s gonna misunderstand you if you say “KEE-ah OR-ah”, but you will 100% sound like an American/Australian/older or not trying very hard Pākehā.)
tora42's nonsensne 