New Zealand All Blacks haka

[xiphias]

So, before battles, Maori warriors would do a chant and ritual dance to pump themselves up and intimidate their opponents. This is called a "haka".

The New Zealand national rugby team thought this was a good idea.

But, see, other nations ALSO have war dances. Tongan warriors have their own, the sipi tau. And, of course, the way that you counter a war dance is to do your own:

Comments

[rosefox]

Just when I thought organized sports could not possibly look more ridiculous...

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

Personally, I think it looks awesome.

[rosefox]

You know, a lot of people say that about organized sports, too. *)

[micheinnz.livejournal.com]

I think it's vital that traditional cultures find new contexts in which to exist. I may not like organised sport either, but I'm very pleased and damn proud to see this happening.

[rosefox]

Hey, if it works for them (and you), great! I'm sure I do plenty of things that I find meaningful and other people find funny-looking. *)

[griffen.livejournal.com]

There's some aboriginal group (and of course I forget their name because I'm like that) that was taught the game of cricket by the British, and they now use it as a substitute for warfare between their tribes. It's quite disconcerting to watch. This reminds me of it.

[griffen.livejournal.com]

Ah, here it is: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trobriand_Cricket

The Trobriand Islanders. We had to watch that in one of my soc classes last winter, and it was fascinating.

[nex0s.livejournal.com]

I thought that was completely wonderful!!! Thank you so much for sharing it :) I have a friend who is Maori, and she performed Haka for me and it is very alarming in person @.@

Just fabulous. I LOVE THIS!!!!

N.

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

I can image that one person doing haka would be alarming.

However, faced with an entire rugby team doing it in unison, I think that the only rational response would be to shit oneself and then run away.

[nex0s.livejournal.com]

I agree!!!

There is a great episode of Anthony Bourdain's "No Reservations" where he goes to NEw Zealand and is convinced that the kids performing are going to rip him limb from limb. It's brilliant :)

N.

[navrins]

I dunno, I think of Indiana Jones's reaction to the mad swordsman in Cairo...

Okay, so in this situation maybe you want a machine gun rather than a pistol, but still, same idea.

[wcg.livejournal.com]

That was pretty interesting to watch. I wonder if it'll catch on in the NFL?

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

Apparently, there are a couple towns in Texas with Maori immigrant populations. Texas football being what it is, it's catching on there.

So, who knows?

[wcg.livejournal.com]

I should have guessed.

[metahacker.livejournal.com]

I love the haka. The lyrics are pretty vicious, though. (Exercise for the reader.)

But then, the sound of a dozen or more men shouting in unison has always been an amazingly inspirational sound for me.

[micheinnz.livejournal.com]

Interesting that you got two different haka there.

The one in the first video is the All Blacks' Haka, composed just for them, called Kapa o Pango.

The one in the second video is Ka Mate, written by Te Rauparaha, a chief of Ngati Toa, after he escaped from a group of men who were trying to kill him.

[katster.livejournal.com]

Cal has a haka. I think we stole ours from the All-Blacks, but it's still pretty intimidating to watch the entire Big Game rally the night before our game with Stanford do the chant.

That one with dueling war-dances was fun, though.

-kat

[micheinnz.livejournal.com]

BTW, the opposing side in green, in the first video? Those are the Springboks, South Africa's national rugby team. They tend to be big buggers (I swear some of them are nine feet tall) and hard to intimidate. They're looking worried, there, though.

[bercilakslady.livejournal.com]

Just have to say, your icon is sick. In a very funny way.

[bercilakslady.livejournal.com]

For what it's worth, hakas are not only war dances, there are also several other versions, used for marking important dates, and welcoming important guests. One version is done primarily by women.

[bercilakslady.livejournal.com]

Was all this because of my post, or were you otherwise interested? Just curious.

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

Actually, I couldn't remember who, on my friends list, I'd gotten it from. But, yeah, it's from yours.

[soberloki.livejournal.com]

First video, initial response: OMFG AWESOME.

Second video: *mad squeee*, followed by gratitude for the fact that I work alone in my office.

Very, very cool. Traditional war dances should be a part of sports more often. Honestly, that's what competitive sports IS: carefully regulated war.