The traditional Māori festival marking the rise of the Pleiades and the Māori New Year is called Matariki.
Matariki is the Māori name for the Pleiades star cluster and for the seasonal period when its heliacal rising appears before dawn. Traditionally, this event marked the beginning of the Māori New Year. Communities use the occasion to remember those who have died, celebrate the present, and plan for the future.
Matariki is closely connected with winter food stores and the agricultural cycle. Clear skies during the cluster’s appearance were traditionally interpreted as signs for the coming year, while observations helped guide seasonal expectations.
New Zealand made Matariki a public holiday beginning in 2022. The date changes each year because it is determined by the Māori lunar calendar and local astronomical observation, not by a fixed Gregorian date.