Versions

1840s. A Ngati Maniapoto woman named Hema composed Moe Hurihuri, after her European husband Spencer was drowned. The Ngati Maniapoto schooner he was the master of went down during a crossing from Kawhia to Sydney.

Ki te makau ra, e moea iho E awhi reinga ana i raro ra Ka hewa au, e koro, kai te ao, i.

To a dear one, who only in dreams comes to embrace me in spirit land Often I thought, dearest one, it was in the flesh

1918. Hema's Lament is the inspiration for Pariare Tomoana (I think it was him) to write Hokihoki Tonu Mai as a the 1918 lament for bereaved wives of WW1 soldiers.

 

1919. Clarence Elkin collected a Hokihoki tune with descending triple notes. This was probably the original tune, but it soon mutated to rising triplets

1924. These lyrics, with herea in the second verse, were published in "Maori Music" by Johannes Andersen, accompanied by the rising tune at the top of this webpage.

Hokihoki tonu mai Te wairua o te tau Ki te awhi Reinga Ki tenei kiri, e au. Ka herea koe e au Ki te here o te aroha Ki te here e kore nei E matara, e au. Taku whaka-taka-riri Ki te Mate ngau kino Tipao rawa koe Ki toku raukura, e au

Again and again he returns, the spirit of my beloved from Reinga, for an embrace with this skin of mine. Oh if I could bind you with the bond of love with a bond that could never be loosened. My anger bites deep, O Death, as you wander away with my plume, my life's breath.

1927. The song was first recorded by Ana Hato on a Parlophone 78 disc, using the 1924 rising tune and pinea in the second verse.

1930 A version with four extra verses was collected by James Cowan and published in "The Maori: Yesterday and To-day."

Hokihoki tonu mai te wairua o te tau Ki te awhi-Reinga ki tenei kiri - e! I tawhiti te aroha e pai ana e te tau. Te paanga ki te uma mamae ana, e te tau! He moenga hurihuri te moenga i wharepuni, Huri atu, huri mai, ko au anake, e te tau. He pikinga tutonu te pikinga Hukarere; Na te aroha ka eke ki runga - e! Aikiha ma e mau mai to uma, Maku i here ka tino pai rawa - e! Ka pinea koe e au ki te pine o te aroha, Ki te pine e kore nei e waikura - e!

Oft does the spirit of my love Return to me To clasp in the spirit-world This form of mine Before love snared me I was alway fine; Now lies in my breast a sweet pain, always, O my love! Restless is my sleep In the dormitory I turn this way, that way, I am lonely, O my love! Far, far above me rise The heights of Hukarere Yet love will Uplift me there. A clean white hanky On your breast I'll tie it there It'll look so smart! I'll pin you to me With the pin of love, with the pin that never rusts!

 

1940, the Little Brown Jug tune

Twenty two years later, in 1940, women started singing Hokihoki to the tune of the cheerful drinking song Little Brown Jug. The sons of those who had returned from World War 1 were volunteering to go away and fight in World War 2, and their mothers changed the tune and gave the words a new interpretation of the words to give themselves the hope that their sons would return home from this new war in Europe.

Again and again he touches me! The spirit of my beloved will return from the land of the dead to hug me!

In 1939 Glenn Miller made the 1869 Appalachian song Little Brown Jug world famous with a popular swing arrangement - "Ha, ha, ha, you and me, little brown jug, don't I love thee."

And the tune of this drinking song is now usually used when singing Hokihoki Tonu Mai.

Those who sing this revved-up version of Hokihoki may sometimes ask themselves "Are we honouring those soldiers who died in World War One? Are we respecting those who grieved heart-brokenly for their loved ones?"

At a tangi, there is a period of several days of mourning, and then when the grief is all expressed, there is a time of happy singing to raise the mood of mourners before they go home again.

A similar process seems to have occurred here. Woman who had lost their lovers in World War One mourned for them, and then, when their grief was all expressed, they found other men who would help them raise the children that would carry on the life of their hapu to the next generation.

This change of mood has also occurred with Hoea Ra te Waka Nei, now sung prettily as Come O Maidens, and the WW2 song Tomo Mai e Tama Ma, now Howard Morrison's revved-up Hoki Mai e Tama Ma.

¹ Reinga

Cape Reinga, the northernmost tip of the North Island, is the jumping-off place of the spirits, where the souls of Maori dead return to their ancestors in Hawaiiki.

Photo courtesy Steven Pinker