New Zealand will have a new public holiday in 2022. This will celebrate Matariki, and in 2022 it will be celebrated around June 24th. Type Matariki in the search box of this website to find information about what it means to Maori people.
While most workers will be happy to have another public holiday, business owners are not so happy because of the cost. They have to pay workers for public holidays. Maori are pleased that this important time of year will be recognised by all New Zealanders. Traditionally, the date is not fixed because Matariki follows the first sign of the Pleidaes constellation of stars in the sky and that varies from year to year. However, the official holiday will have a set date, and always be on a Friday or a Monday to give workers a 3-day weekend.
Some cities celebrated Matariki this year with a lighting display. Christchurch lit up the city beside the river on Oxford St and had a fireworks display in New Brighton. MOTAT in Auckland had a special display of Night Lights. Winter is a good time of year for lighting displays as it gets dark quite early. Sunset in New Zealand at this time of year is between 5pm and 5.30pm, depending on where you live.
Vocabulary:
fixed: unchanging, not flexible
set: fixed, unchanging
lit up: made light
MOTAT: the Museum of Transport and Technology
depending on: conditional to, varying according to circumstance
constellation: a group of stars
Pleidaes: this constellation is known as Matariki in Maori language, and Subaru in Japanese.