Sorry to do this, but Get Fuzzy today has Bucky displaying that he knows more of the words to the All Blacks' haka than most Zilders!
http://www.comics.com/comics/getfuzzy/archive/images/getfuzzy2004305040603.gif
That's not a bad link, except that it calls "ka mate" THE Maaori haka. It is a haka, one of a great many, and by no means the best, imo. The composing and performing of haka is now an organised sport in NZ, called kapa haka, and some of the compositions, especially from areas where Maaori is still the first language, can be quite inspiring. Not surprisingly, the NZ Maori rugby team has its own specially-written haka, which knocks "ka mate" into a cocked hat.
I *thought that was Maaori.
Understand any of it, wow?
May I please have a wav file of you singing this or any other haka, Max?
>Singing Max
cfunspeakable horror, crime against humanity. I will, however, record the haka as a spoken WAV for you asap.
Sorry, ASp, I wimped out. The haka really is best seen and heard, and not when spoken by one weedy little pakeha. I found a nice mpeg of the AB's performing the haka for an Adidas ad. It's about 3MB, so I suggest saving the file to disk before playing it if you're on a dialup connexion (I nearly said, "right-click, then save as", but I remembered that Apple meece don't have no right button). The ad is a pretty good performance, actually. I once saw footage of the 1905 All Blacks performing the haka - a bunch of skinny, gangly, white guys - utterly pathetic! Now that the All Black team is dominated by Maori and Pacific Island players, they really look the part when performing it.
http://maxqnz.com/kamatehaka.mpeg
After the New Zealand memorial service on Chunuk Bair (at Gallipoli, in Turkey) on April 25, the male members of the NZ army contingent (aided, impressively and competently by two Australian liaison officers) did "Ka mate". They invited anyone in the crowd who felt like it to join in, which several did. Even those who didn't do the actions shouted the words out, including me, who had bothered to look them up after the embarrassment of not be able to remember them at a restaurant a week earlier. The Maori women - and non-Maori as well - called out in support. There must have been 40 or 50 voices all told, and the army guys put everything into the actual haka, as did the Maori/part Maori guys in the crowd. It was intensely moving, even for cynical little me.
The Australians and Turks in the crowd were just blown away. I think they thought it was like a Masonic handshake, only you had to be a New Zealander to use it.
Which, I guess, it was!
Apple meece don't have no right button
I'll listen to the file tomorrow at school on the fast line, but I did want to say I have a lovely little two-button Kensington mouse with a scroll wheel. works great on my OSX...
intensely moving, even for cynical little me
Doncha just hate it when that happens?
You could always claim you're a cynic in the original meaning of the word.
Hanging out at the White Dog Gym
I rather think I lack the self-control part of it ...
And I'm not so hot on virtue, either, come to think of it
I think I'll have a beer and ponder ...
That was great Max, thanks.
Well, it may give you some idea what it's like when 50-odd fighting men are doing it! Frightened the bejeezus out the Germans at Cassino, I'm told.
WOW - thanks max. Words fail me. They look so scary, like "oh ya, you come on over here and I'll tear your head off with my bare hands." I can just imagine how foes would have felt coming up against an army of men like these.
oh ya, you come on over herein the US, we don't wait for you to come over here...
lack the self-control
You could become a Stoic, instead, and just hang out on the front porch. Have 'er inside bring you your ale.
I must be one already, albeit part-time. 'Er indoors does bring me an ale on our patio from time to time. As I do for her, 'an all!
Thank you for that link, Max. I really don't have words (believe it not) to describe it. So I'll stick with "fighteningly beautiful" for now.
I nearly said, "right-click, then save as"...
Not to worry. I've learned how to translate.
Bel - the foes in the clip are Aussies; the mighty Wallabies to be precise. I don't think they are excessively perturbed by the "Blecks"; conquered that mountain!!
(It's just the Poms that recently provided Australia with a little hiccup in terms of world rugby supremacy!)
stales
Max - despite my tongue in cheek response to bel's post in this thread, I never tire of watching the haka. Thanks for the magic link; always gets the hair standing on end!!
I've often wondered however how the "foe" should behave when the focus of a haka? Historically on the battle field and these days on the park.
The Wallabies usually adopt a respectful watching stance or sometimes go into a huddle and ignore the proceedings. Both seem reasonable but I recall a few years ago the Saffies roaring with laughter and pointing during the performance. I was appalled at this but understand that it was the boks' way of minimising the intimidatory effect.
I suspect historically the foe would give a return performance? Decades ago the Wallabies did just this; they performed an aboriginal style war dance. I've never seen footage of it but would be keen to bring it back.
stales
In reply to:
I've often wondered however how the "foe" should behave when the focus of a haka?
They are supposed to roll over and play dead, just like the Poms did in Dunedin last Saturday. 
Poms: No Robinson, no Johnson and, above all, no Jonnie.
No chance.
stales
Well, even with Jonno it wouldn't have been close. Carter is obviously up for a kicking competition with him any time!
How about a quote from the Scottish play?
There would have been a time for such a word…
http://www.online-literature.com/shakespeare/macbeth/26/
The word haka is made up two parts: ha-ka.
Ha = Breath Ka = To ignite, to energise
Ha-ka can mean "to ignite the breath".
The haka is simply a way to ignite the breath,
energise the body and inspire the spirit.
We can see that the root meaning of the word haka
is associated with the breath in a similar way
the word spirit derives from the Latin word spiritus meaning breath or air.
This leads to such words as inspiration or expiration!
These same meanings are similar to the words
of the All Black haka.
Ka mate Tis death
Ka mate Tis death
Ka ora Tis life
Ka ora Tis life
From
http://www.tu.co.nz/haka.htm