Ka hiiri ki runga he toi atua ko Matariki, ka hiiri ki raro he toi tangata,
ko Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po.

He hui nui taioreore ka pao te reka, he hui rangatira e tapa nei i te uri mātāmua o ngā waka katoa, i a Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te pō, hei pou kairangi mō te kaupapa o Te Kōhanga Reo. Ko te tūranga tēnei i nōhia e tana Pāpā e Kiingi Tuheitia, otirā e Te Arikinui Te Atairangikaahu i ō rāua nā wā.

"This is a profoundly auspicious gathering, one that will echo through generations, as we come together to formally acknowledge Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po as the Patron of the Te Kōhanga Reo movement. She now stands as the unifying figure across our respective waka, continuing a legacy once held by her father, Kiingi Tuheitia Pootatau Te Wherowhero VII, and her grandmother, Te Arikinui Te Atairangikaahu."

Kua tapaina he ingoa hou ki te tūranga nei hei tohu i te toihau o te kaipupuri, ka mutu, nā Tā Timoti Karetu te ingoa mō tēnei tūranga i tākoha. Ko ‘Te Kāuru o Te Kōhanga Reo’ te ingoa o tēnei tūranga, ā, e whakanonoi ana te ingoa i te tiketike o tā Te Arikinui noho ki te rākau taumatua o te kaupapa, te taumata i nōhia e ngā Pōhoi Toroā o Te Kōhanga Reo i tōna whakairatanga mai.

A new title was conferred upon this role by Sir Tīmoti Kāretu, acknowledging the paramount status of its holder. The title, Te Kāuru o Te Kōhanga Reo, positions Te Arikinui as the highest embodiment of integrity, honouring her as the guardian and protector of the kaupapa. This name affirms her role as the apex of our collective aspirations, continuing a legacy that has been nurtured since the movement’s inception.

Ka noho Te Arikinui hei kauwaka ki te ao wairua, e māturu iho tonu ai ō rātou tini akoranga hei taonga mō te ngākau o ngā tamariki mokopuna o te motu, ā, mātua rā hoki te kete kōrero e kī ana; “Manaakitia ngā mokopuna, whāngaitia ki te ūkaipō, ki te kupu kōrero, atawhaitia i roto i ngā tikanga, kia tipu, kia tū rangatira i roto i tēnei ao hurihuri.”

"Te Arikinui serves as a sacred link to those who have gone before, ensuring that their teachings continue to guide and enlighten the hearts and souls of our children and mokopuna across the motu. As we draw from the kete of mātauranga, we are reminded: 'Nurture our mokopuna, feed them at the breast of their mother tongue, raise them in their values, so they may stand tall and grounded to face the challenges of this world.'

Hei tā Rahui Papa nō te Tari o Te Kiingitanga; “Ko te hokinga ariki mai tēnei o te mokopuna ki tōna kaupapa, otirā, ko Te Arikinui te whakatinanatanga o ngā wawata nui o Te Kōhanga Reo. Tere tonu nei te hoe o te waka ki hawaiki hou, ki runga i ngā wai horahora o te reo Māori me ōna tikanga, pūhia nei e ngā hau tāhengihengi o te reanga hou ka pae nei ki uta.  

Te Arikinui is a living legacy of Te Kōhanga Reo, a mokopuna raised in its embrace, now guiding its future. Her appointment marks a new chapter, where the kaupapa grows stronger, grounded in tikanga and te reo, and driven by the dreams of our next generations," says Rahui Papa, Tari o Te Kiingitanga. 

He mokopuna i tipu, he raukura i rea, he Kuini i hiiritia. Nau mai, haere mai rā e te Kāuru o Te Kōhanga Reo, Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po.

"A mokopuna who has flourished, an aspiration now realised, a Queen anointed.
Welcome, draw near — e te Kāuru o Te Kōhanga Reo, Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po."

 Te Poari o Te Kōhanga Reo

Endorsed by the CE’s Office
Angus Hartley
Tumu Whakarae | Chief Executive Officer
Te Kōhanga Reo National Trust