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What do the names of the months of the Maramataka mean

Author

Henry Morales

Published Apr 05, 2026

The maramataka divided the traditional Māori year into 12 lunar months. The word marama means both the moon and the lunar month – a lunar month is the 29 and a half days between successive new moons, and normally straddles two calendar months.

What is the meaning behind the maramataka?

The Māori lunar calendar is called the Maramataka, which literally means the turning of the moon. It marks the phases of the moon in a lunar month.

What are the lunar month names?

  • January: Wolf Moon. …
  • February: Snow Moon. …
  • March: Worm Moon. …
  • April: Pink Moon. …
  • May: Flower Moon. …
  • June: Strawberry Moon. …
  • July: Buck Moon. …
  • August: Sturgeon Moon.

What do lunar months mean?

What is a lunar month? It’s the duration between successive new moons. Also called a lunation or synodic month, it has a mean period of 29.53059 days (29 days 12 hours and 44 minutes). That’s the mean, but the the true length varies throughout the year.

What are the phases of the moon in Māori?

European cultures can have up to 8 phases for the Moon – Full, Waning Gibbous, Last Quarter, Waning Crescent, New Moon, Waxing Crescent, First Quarter and Waxing Gibbous. Polynesians have as many as 32, with an average of 30 – these are presented below.

Why is the maramataka important?

For Māori, the Maramataka identified key moments throughout the phases of the moon which would be ideal for practices such as fishing, eeling, planting and harvesting crops (Tawhai, 2013; Devonshire, 1977). These being crucial practices for the maintenance and sustenance for marae, iwi and hapū.

Where does maramataka originate from?

The maramataka came to Aotearoa with the first Polynesian migrants who arrived 800 to 1000 years ago. The first people would later become the indigenous Māori. By the time of the first Europeans arrived, every tribal group had developed its own unique maramataka based on the environment they lived in.

What's the longest month in 2021?

January 2021 – Longest Month Ever – The Beth Lists.

What does a calendar month mean?

Definition of calendar month 1 : one of the months as named in the calendar. 2 : the period from a day of one month to the corresponding day of the next month if such exists or if not to the last day of the next month (as from January 3 to February 3 or from January 31 to February 29)

How many moons does month have?

The Moon orbits the Earth about once every 29 days. So, usually, there’s one full moon per month, but – about every 4 years or so – there’ll be a “blue moon” – a second full moon in a calendar month. There can be maximum two full moons in one calendar month.

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What are the 4 different lunar months?

  • Sidereal month.
  • Synodic month.
  • Tropical month.
  • Anomalistic month.
  • Draconic month.
  • Derivation.

What is a lunar birthday?

Every 12 years, one’s birthday falls during the lunar year of their birth, which gives this birthday a special significance due to the importance of the lunar calendar and zodiac in Chinese culture. Celebrations for one’s lunar year birthday involve meals with one’s family and extended family.

What do full Moon names mean?

The Full Moon Names we use in the Almanac come from the Algonquin tribes who lived in regions from New England to Lake Superior. They are the names the Colonial Americans adapted most. Note that each full Moon name was applied to the entire lunar month in which it occurred.

How does maramataka work?

The maramataka is the traditional Māori calendar. Each year has 12 months based on the cycles of the moon. These lunar months begin and end when the moon is full, and last for about 30 days. … Each month is represented by a star or stars.

What are the Maori names for the moon?

marama. 1. (noun) moon.

What is the Maori name for full moon?

Ōturu (full moon) Korekore piri kī Tangaroa (waning gibbous) Tangaroa ā roto (last quarter) Ōtāne (waning crescent)

What do the Maori months mean?

The maramataka divided the traditional Māori year into 12 lunar months. The word marama means both the moon and the lunar month – a lunar month is the 29 and a half days between successive new moons, and normally straddles two calendar months. … Each month also had its own name, which sometimes varied between tribes.

What does Rakaunui mean?

Rakaunui – high energy, schedule special occasions.

What is the meaning of Pipiri?

Definition of pipiri : any of several West Indian flycatchers especially : gray kingbird.

What face of the moon are we in today?

The Moon’s current phase for today and tonight is a Waning Crescent phase.

What are all the months in order?

  • January – 31 days.
  • February – 28 days (29 days on a leap year)
  • March – 31 days.
  • April – 30 days.
  • May – 31 days.
  • June – 30 days.
  • July – 31 days.
  • August – 31 days.

Is notice period in calendar months?

A 30-day notice period means that notice can be given on any day of the month and the period will then terminate in 30 days’ time.

Whats the difference between a calendar month and a month?

A calendar month is one of the twelve months of the year. A calendar month is the period from a particular date in one month to the same date in the next month, for example from April 4th to May 4th. …

What month has the shortest name?

You know it as the shortest month of the year—or, depending on where you live, the coldest. But, do you know where the name February came from?

What is the shortest month in a year?

Have you ever wondered why February is the shortest month of the year? If you take a look at your calendar, you’ll notice that February only has 28 days while the other months have 30 or 31 days.

Which is the best month in the year?

Wikimedia Commons It’s time to put this argument to rest once and for all: September is the best month of the year. First, let’s run down the definitive ranking of months from best to worst: September.

How old is the moon?

The most widely accepted origin explanation posits that the Moon formed about 4.51 billion years ago, not long after Earth, out of the debris from a giant impact between the planet and a hypothesized Mars-sized body called Theia.

What is a Wolf Moon 2021?

The full moon of January, called the Wolf Moon, will occur on Thursday, Jan. 28, at 2:16 p.m. EST (1916 GMT) according to NASA. The moon will be in the constellation Cancer, and rises just a few minutes before sunset.

Does the moon rotate?

The moon does rotate on its axis. One rotation takes nearly as much time as one revolution around Earth. … Over time it has slowed down because of the effect of Earth’s gravity. Astronomers call this a “tidally locked” state because it will now remain at this speed.

What is the 3rd lunar month?

MonthChineseExplanation2杏月(Xìngyuè)Apricot trees blossom.3桃月(Táoyuè)Peach trees blossom.4槐月(Huáiyuè)Locust trees blossom.5蒲月(Púyuè)Lunar month 5 day 5 is the Dragon Boat Festival

How many months are in a lunar calendar?

Present-day lunisolar calendars include the Chinese, Vietnamese, Hindu, and Thai calendars. Synodic months are 29 or 30 days in length, making a lunar year of 12 months about 11 to 12 days shorter than a solar year.