Matariki is the Maori New Year celebration that occurs in June or July, named after a star cluster that is visible then. It marks the beginning of a new year for Maori people according to their oral histories, which tell of how the sky and earth were originally joined until their children separated them, creating daylight.

1. matarikiMaori New Year is celebrated in June and July. It is called Matariki.

2. Matariki is a special time for Maori people.

3. Matariki is a group of stars. It has 500 stars.Matariki is a celebration the Maori people enjoy for a New Year in early June or early July.We can only see about 6 or 7 stars.

4. At the beginning of time there was nothing. Then out of this emptiness two Gods appeared. There was Ranginui the Sky Father and Papatuanukathe Earth Mother.They stayed so close that their tamariki children could not see daylight. One day they decided they would push their parents apart. So they pushed and pushed and then Tu had his turn and then he put his shoulders against his mother and his feet against his father.

5. He pushed and he pushed. He got them apart. Their parents cried and cried. Then the God of Wind and Storms was so angry that he got out his eyes and threw them in the air.