Anania Amohau

Anania (Nan) Amohau was born in Whakarewarewa and educated at Whakarewarewa Primary School and Te Aute College. He worked as a photographer in Rotorua and was a member of the Māori concert party at Whakarewarewa. He married June Mellar Monk in 1939 and they had two girls and one son, and adopted two boys and a daughter. J. F. Cody writes that at the time of the opening of the Māori court at the 1940 Centennial Exhibition a Māori ceremonial guard was requested by Sir Apirana Ngata and ‘in addition to the military pageantry there was also a haka party, led by Private Anania Amohau, which carried out the traditional welcoming dances and added a Māori atmosphere to the occasion.’ Amohau wrote a marching song called ‘Māori Battalion’ which became one of the most famous New Zealand patriotic songs. He served as a corporal in the 28th Māori Battalion C Company and during the first ceremonial parade of the reorganised battalion in June 1941 led a haka party before the King and Queen of Greece and General Freyberg. Amohau returned to New Zealand because of eye trouble and in 1946 when the Māori Battalion returned to Wellington, on the Dominion Monarch, he performed the wero. He was a recognised expert in haka and in 1953 when Queen Elizabeth came to New Zealand Amohau led the haka and did the challenge at the Rotorua Race Course. He moved to Avalon in 1949 and worked as a clerk at Māori Affairs and then worked at the Petone Woollen Mills for a number of years. He subsequently worked at Gorrie’s Cement Works in Petone until ill health led to his retirement. Amohau was actively involved in Māori concert parties and wrote songs and choral arrangements for a number of different groups. He was involved with Ngāti Poneke, Ngāti Riatana, and a culture group - Te Pataka - which worked in tourism. He taught Māori culture in the adult education programme in Martinborough and Masterton and his culture groups entered Māori culture competitions all over the country. Amohau was a deeply religious man—he was raised in a Catholic home and later converted to the Salvation Army. He presented a 10-minute religious meditation for a television programme which was screened early in 1972 shortly after his death.

Biographical sources

• Phone conversations and correspondence with Mike Amohau and Jo Hata on 13, 15 and 23 June 1998.
• 28 (Māori) Battalion. J. F. Cody. Wellington, N.Z.: War History Branch, Department of Internal Affairs, 1956.
• Guide Rangi of Rotorua. Rangitiaria Dennan with Ross Annabell. Christchurch, N.Z.: Whitcombe & Tombs, 1968. 123.