December 01, 2016
Reo gift unlocked tribal secrets
A Ngati Pukenga elder says the death of Te Awanuiarangi Black leaves a huge hole not only in his iwi but in te ao Maori.
Mr Black passwed away in Tauranga Hospital aged 48.
Buddy Mikaere says the tributes flowing for him are revealing the huge range of activities he was involved in.
He saw the practical value of his expertise in te reo and tikanga during a trip through Te Urewera retracing the steps of their ancestor Pukenga.
"I was just amazed at the depth of knowledge Awanui had about the places we were going and the associations linking them to tupuna and I think it did come from the fact that he had such a command of te reo he was able to talk with the old people we met and coax them into telling him what they knew," Mr Mikaere says.
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