Matariki

Matariki is a public holiday in New Zealand because it is the new year for the Maori people. It happens in mid winter and this year it was on July 14 2023. The name of Matariki means the eyes of the god.

Maori celebrate new year by spending time together as a family. They also pray for others who have died. They have special food there, and they tell stories about Matariki and look forward to the future.

Matariki stars can be seen early in the morning before the sun comes up. I don’t get up that early to get to see the Matariki stars. We made Matariki stars and we had so much fun. It took us at least 3 or 4 days to try and make them. My star is above and these are our Matariki stars altogether.