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Adorable 'Haka baby' dance offers a sweet window into Maori culture

Stop what you're doing and let this awesomeness wash over you.

@focuswithdan/TikTok

If you've never seen a Maori haka performed, you're missing out.

The Maori are the indigenous peoples of New Zealand, and their language and customs are an integral part of the island nation. One of the most recognizable Maori traditions outside of New Zealand is the haka, a ceremonial dance or challenge usually performed in a group. The haka represents the pride, strength, and unity of a tribe and is characterized by foot-stamping, body slapping, tongue protrusions, and rhythmic chanting.

Haka is performed at weddings as a sign of reverence and respect for the bride and groom and are also frequently seen before sports competitions, such as rugby matches.


The intensity of the haka is the point. It is meant to be a show of strength and elicit a strong response—which makes seeing a tiny toddler learning to do it all the more adorable.

Here's an example of a rugby haka:

Danny Heke, who goes by @focuswithdan on TikTok, shared a video of a baby learning haka and omigosh it is seriously the most adorable thing. When you see most haka, the dancers aren't smiling—their faces are fierce—so this wee one starting off with an infectious grin is just too much. You can see that he's already getting the moves down, facial expressions and all, though.

@focuswithdan When you grow up learning haka! #haka #teachthemyoung #maori #māori #focuswithdan #fyp #foryou #kapahaka ♬ original sound - 𝕱𝖔𝖈𝖚𝖘𝖂𝖎𝖙𝖍𝕯𝖆𝖓

As cute as this video is, it's part of a larger effort by Heke to use his TikTok channel to share and promote Maori culture. His videos cover everything from the Te Reo Maori language to traditional practices to issues of prejudice Maori people face.

Here he briefly goes over the different body parts that make up haka:

@focuswithdan

♬ Ngati - Just2maori

This video explains the purerehua, or bullroarer, which is a Maori instrument that is sometimes used to call rains during a drought.

@focuswithdan Reply to @illumi.is.naughty Some tribes used this to call the rains during drought 🌧 ⛈ #maori #māori #focuswithdan #fyp ♬ Pūrerehua - 𝕱𝖔𝖈𝖚𝖘𝖂𝖎𝖙𝖍𝕯𝖆𝖓

This one shares a demonstration and explanation of the taiaha, a traditional Maori weapon.

@focuswithdan Reply to @shauncalvert Taiaha, one of the most formidable of the Māori Weaponry #taiaha #maori #māori #focuswithdan #fyp #foryou ♬ original sound - 𝕱𝖔𝖈𝖚𝖘𝖂𝖎𝖙𝖍𝕯𝖆𝖓

For another taste of haka, check out this video from a school graduation:

@focuswithdan When your little cuzzy graduates and her school honours her with a haka #maori #māori #haka #focuswithdan #fyp #graduation @its_keshamarley ♬ Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ngāti Ruanui - 𝕱𝖔𝖈𝖚𝖘𝖂𝖎𝖙𝖍𝕯𝖆𝖓

Heke even has some fun with the trolls and racists in the comments who try to tell him his culture is dead (what?).

@focuswithdan Credit to you all my AMAZING FOLLOWERS! #focuswithdan #maori #māori #followers #fyp #trolls ♬ original sound - sounds for slomo_bro!

Unfortunately, it's not just ignorant commenters who spew racist bile. A radio interview clip that aired recently called Maori people "genetically predisposed to crime, alcohol, and underperformance," among other terrible things. (The host, a former mayor of Auckland, has been let go for going along with and contributing to the caller's racist narrative.)

@focuswithdan #newzealand radio in 2021 delivering racist commentaries 🤦🏽‍♂️ #māori #maori #focuswithdan #racism DC: @call.me.lettie2.0 ♬ original sound - luna the unicow

That clip highlights why what Heke is sharing is so important. The whole world is enriched when Indigenous people like the Maori have their voices heard and their culture celebrated. The more we learn from each other and our diverse ways of life, the more enjoyable life on Earth will be and the better we'll get at collaborating to confront the challenges we all share.


This article originally appeared on 01.28.21

From Your Site Articles
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Family

10 things most kids don't know about their mothers

1. You made her cry ... a lot.



Pregnant.

There it was, clear as day, two blue lines staring back at me from the small pregnancy test I had just purchased.

I double-checked...

One line = not pregnant.

Two lines = pregnant.

Photo via iStock.


Yup, I was definitely pregnant.

My heart was pounding.

My head was spinning.

My stomach was churning.

I was nervous, excited, scared, and ecstatic all at the same time.

Photo via iStock.

This was actually happening! After years of dreaming, preparing for, and anticipating this day, it was finally here. I was going to be a mother.

Little did I know that in nine short months, I would begin the most exhausting, life-changing, heart-wrenching, but indescribably rewarding journey of my life.

In nine months, I would learn the price of motherhood firsthand. I would know exactly what it takes to be a mother. I would gain a whole new understanding of and gratitude for the beautiful woman I call Mom.

I would learn about things mothers experience that their children often know very little about.

Here are 10 things your mom never told you.

1. You made her cry ... a lot.

She cried when she found out she was pregnant. She cried as she gave birth to you. She cried when she first held you. She cried with happiness. She cried with fear. She cried with worry. She cried because she feels so deeply for you. She felt your pain and your happiness and she shared it with you, whether you realized it or not.

2. She wanted that last piece of pie.

But when she saw you look at it with those big eyes and lick your mouth with that tiny tongue, she couldn't eat it. She knew it would make her much happier to see your little tummy be filled than hers.

3. It hurt.

When you pulled her hair, it hurt; when you grabbed her with those sharp fingernails that were impossible to cut, it hurt; when you bit her while drinking milk, that hurt, too. You bruised her ribs when you kicked her from her belly; you stretched her stomach out for nine months; you made her body contract in agonizing pain as you entered this world.

4. She was always afraid.

From the moment you were conceived, she did all in her power to protect you. She became your mama bear. She was that lady who wanted to say no when the little girl next door asked to hold you and who cringed when she did because in her mind no one could keep you as safe as she herself could. Her heart skipped two beats with your first steps. She stayed up late to make sure you got home safe and woke up early to see you off to school. With every stubbed toe and little stumble, she was close by; she was ready to snatch you up with every bad dream or late-night fever. She was there to make sure you were OK.

She stayed up late to make sure you got home safe and woke up early to see you off to school.

5. She knows she's not perfect.

She is her own worst critic. She knows all her flaws and sometimes hates herself for them. She is hardest on herself when it comes to you, though. She wanted to be the perfect mom, to do nothing wrong — but because she is human, she made mistakes. She is probably still trying to forgive herself for them. She wishes with her whole heart that she could go back in time and do things differently, but she can't, so be kind to her and know she did the best she knew how to do.


6. She watched you as you slept.

There were nights when she was up 'til 3 a.m. praying that you would finally fall asleep. She could hardly keep her eyes open as she sang to you, and she would beg you to "please, please fall asleep." Then, when you finally fell asleep, she would lay you down, and all her tiredness would disappear for a short second as she sat by your bedside looking down at your perfect cherub face, experiencing more love than she knew was possible, despite her worn-out arms and aching eyes.

7. She carried you a lot longer than nine months.

You needed her to. So she did. She would learn to hold you while she cleaned; she would learn to hold you while she ate; she would even hold you while she slept because it was the only way she could sometimes. Her arms would get tired, her back would hurt, but she held you still because you wanted to be close to her. She snuggled you, loved you, kissed you, and played with you. You felt safe in her arms; you were happy in her arms; you knew you were loved in her arms, so she held you, as often and as long as you needed.

Her arms would get tired, her back would hurt, but she held you still because you wanted to be close to her.

8. It broke her heart every time you cried.

There was no sound as sad as your cries or sight as horrible as the tears streaming down your perfect face. She did all in her power to stop you from crying, and when she couldn't stop your tears, her heart would shatter into a million little pieces.

9. She put you first.

She went without food, without showers, and without sleep. She always put your needs before her own. She would spend all day meeting your needs, and by the end of the day, she would have no energy left for herself. But the next day, she would wake up and do it all over again because you meant that much to her.

10. She would do it all again.

Being a mom is one of the hardest jobs anyone can do, and it will take you to your very limits sometimes. You cry, you hurt, you try, you fail, you work, and you learn. But, you also experience more joy than you thought was possible and feel more love than your heart can contain. Despite all the pain, grief, late nights, and early mornings you put your mom through, she would do it all again for you because you are worth it to her.

So, next time you see her, tell your mom thank you; let her know that you love her. She can never hear it too many times.


This article originally appeared on 05.27.16










From Your Site Articles
Family

Dad's viral reaction to finding out babies don't have kneecaps has people rolling

Turns out he's not the only one who didn't know this fact about baby anatomy.

Photo credit: Canva

When you're a first time parent, you learn something new every day.

Becoming a parent for the first time means learning all kinds of fun facts you otherwise might have never thought of. For instance, did you know that a baby won’t produce tears till its first 3-4 weeks? Or that their stomachs are only the size of a wee walnut? Incredible, right? It’s enough to put any new parent in awe.

Thanks to TikTok, we see one dad’s shock and amazement at learning that babies don’t have kneecaps—at least not in the same way that adults do. Apparently, this was new information to a lot of folks.

In a video shared by Dylan and Shelby Reese, the couple behind the TikTok account @shelbanddyl, we see a bewildered Dylan holding their son (or as Dylan says, their “no kneecap havin’’” son) presumably after Shelby has just delivered this lesser know anatomy fact.

Through laughter, Shelby tries to explain that the kneecaps will develop later, to which Dylan replies, “What kind of design flaw is this?! So you’re telling me this little nugget is kneecap-less until they’re like 2-6 years old? That’s wild!”

@shelbanddyl It only took him nearly 30 years to find this out 🤣 #shelbanddyl #husbandreacts #baby #couples #relationships ♬ original sound - Shelby & Dylan

Dylan wasn’t the only one surprised by this. Several viewers were also unaware.

“I was today years old learning that kids have no kneecaps. I am 31,” one person wrote.

“I have 4 kids, Shelby. 4 kids and never ever knew they didn’t have kneecaps. What in the world,” another added.

Another brought in this very astute question: “is this why we can crawl as children but then it hurts when we grow up?” Seriously—the world needs to know this.

To save you Google fact checking deep dive, babies technically do have kneecaps.

But according to Healthline, those kneecaps are made of softer, more flexible cartilage that will eventually become the bony kneecap, or patella, that adults have. Much in the same way that the nose, ears and other joints evolve. This process begins between the ages of 2 and 6, and ends around the age of 10 to 12.

Having soft knee caps not only helps with the birthing process, but also makes for more comfortable crawling as babies learn to walk. So yes, the soft-to-hard knee transient problem is why adults don’t have as much fun crawling around. You learn something new every day!

Just goes to show that parenting offers new discoveries to delight in all the time.

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Popular

Baby talking gibberish in a Scouse accent is an adorable window into language learning

Babies aren't just learning words as they learn to talk.

Photo by Daniel Thomas on Unsplash

Babies develop accents before they're able to articulate words.

The way humans learn language in early childhood is a fascinating thing. You don't have to directly teach a baby how to talk—they learn through immersion and observation, deriving meaning through repetition, context, facial expressions and body language.

Learning to talk isn't just learning how to form sounds into words. It's also learning how to communicate within a social structure, which starts with the family and community. Even two people who speak the same language will have differences in how they communicate, from slang to hand gestures to accent, based on where and with whom they live.

And nowhere is that more apparent than in a viral video of a Liverpool mom having a "conversation" with her baby.

The video shows a woman lying on a bed, chatting with a baby who doesn't want to go to sleep. Their back-and-forth includes the woman explaining that the baby has had a bottle and a diaper change and is now supposed to go to sleep, while the baby argues back in 99% gibberish—but with a clear Scouse accent (the British accent associated with Liverpool, England).

Watch the video from @iamcustardpot on TikTok:

@iamcustardpot

Cutie patoooootie!! #scousetiktok #fyp #fyppppppppppppppppppppppp

People were surprised and delighted at how well you could hear the accent come through even though the baby was just babbling.

"A baby scouse accent is killing me😭😭"

"Gibberish in a Scouse accent is my new favourite 🥰😂"

"bro mastered the scouse accent but no words 👏😂"

"This is the most adorable Scouse accent ever 😭😂"

"Scouse accent with no actual words is elite."

"The scouse accent is more important than words.😂"

"For anyone wondering about why she’s got a scouse accent, babies mimic intonation and sounds before they learn words 😁"

That last commenter is right. As child development expert Dan Wuori explained in a post on X, this video is a perfect example of how elements of a baby's language develops long before they are able to form coherent words.

"Do babies develop accents even before they can speak conventionally? The short answer is yes… and these linguistic markers begin even sooner than you might think," wrote Wuori. "Other than “no” he doesn’t speak a single conventional word, but listen to how the rhythm and intonation of his vocalizations mirror those to which he is exposed daily. As hearing becomes functional during the third trimester, infants are exposed to the distinct patterns of their mothers’ native language—with studies suggesting newborns can already distinguish (and prefer) what will become their native tongue only hours after birth."

Wuori explained that such learning is evidenced even before the babbling stage.

"Research suggests that even the cries of newborns reflect this preference. That’s right: babies cry with an accent. One major study on the topic showed that French babies cry with a rising intonation, while German infants favor a falling melody—both reflecting the patterns of their native languages. We’re only just beginning to understand the deep learning that begins in utero. It’s just more evidence that the period from prenatal to three is the most critical window in all of human development."

By the way, the baby's name is Orla and the woman in the video, Layka, is not Orla's mom but she looks after her sometimes. After the video went viral, Orla got her own TikTok page so people can enjoy hearing her little Scouse babbles and watch her language development as it explodes into real words and sentences. You can follow Orlasworld on TikTok and see more of her chatting with Aunty Layka here:

@orlasmama72736

Sick of aunty Layka trying to tell me what to do #scousetiktok #scousebaby #fyp #fyppppppppppppppppppppppp

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