Day 1 Te Matatini Profile: Ngā Purapura o Te Taihauāuru

Established in 2002, Ngā Purapura o Te Taihauāuru constituent hapū include: Ngāti Hinemōkai, Pukerangiora, Puketapu, Manukōrihi, Ngāti Rāhiri of Ngāti Maruwharanui and Te Ātiawa iwi from the Aotea rohe.

Click here to view their performances.

Their leading philosophy is encapsulated in their whakataukī "ko au te taupā, kīhai i puāwai āku moemoeā".

They go on to explain it's about their members removing self-limiting thinking patterns and behaviours and planting a metaphorical seed of empowerment to overcome self-imposed obstacles.

"E pēnei ana te kōrero, kāti rawa te tangata te whakaiti i aia tonu ki te whakatutuki i āna nei mahi, kei pōhēhē mai aia, anā, he koretake nōna ki te whakatutuki i āna mahi katoa, ka riro tērā āhuatanga ki aia, "Ko au te taupā, kīhai i puāwai āku moemoeā."

They have two main goals: maintaining 'Te Reo o Taranaki' and continue building their club to enable the continuation of kapa haka in Taranaki ensuring that it thrives.

Te Matatini: Your 101 guide to the spectacular performance

Pango (black), whero (red) and mā (white) are the group's colours. Pango represents the dark history of Taranaki in the 1800s from the Māori land wars, to the incarceration of their Pakakohi tūpuna in the South Island and the 1881 invasion of Parihaka, referred to as Te Pāhuatanga i Parihaka.

Whero is for the blood spilled in their defence of the lands of which the group's ancestors come from, as well as the blood that flows in the veins of group members courtesy connecting them to their ancestors. For the group it serves as a reminder that they are survivors, "te iwi mōrehu", and that they are still here and are the "mōrehu people of Taranaki".

Mā on the other hand represents the 'raukura', a symbol connecting them to the prophets of the 1800s, Tohu Kākahi and Te Whiti o Rongomai who said "ko taku raukura he manawanui ki te Kākahu".

The piupiu the group's wear are the group's predominant affinity of Taranaki — Ngāti Maru.

Mathew Tuuta-Rawiri serves as manukura tāne, while Te Aroha Broughton-Pue serves as manukura wahine. Te Whānau o ngā Purapura o Te Tai Hauāuru serves as the group's leader.

You can catch their full performance here.