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This Haka Wedding Dance Will Have You Tearing Up

Grab some tissues!

It's not unusual for a wedding video to get a lot of "likes" online, but it is rare for it to be viewed more than 22 million times.

New Zealand's Aaliyah and Benjamin Armstrong's wedding video has gone viral after being posted on Facebook by I'm Proud to be Tongan on Wednesday.

The emotional video features the young newlyweds —who are both Maori — watching their bridal party and guests perform the traditional haka dance before joining in themselves.

"I wasn't planning on jumping in until one bridesmaid did," the bride told the BBC. "I felt the need to show love and respect back. I was really blown away."

In Maori culture, haka is a traditional war dance once performed to intimidate enemies. Today, the dance and chant are performed at special events and celebrations to welcome guests.

And while the chant certainly sounds intimidating when paired with the aggressive body slapping and facial expressions, the words are actually quite uplifting.

"Tika tonu atu ki a koe, e tama" is a call for Maori youth to be true to themselves. While "Roa ina hoki ra, te tohe o te uaua na

E tāu nei," roughly translates to "no matter how long you reflect on it, the answer to the problem is here inside you."

The almost three-minute long dance was organized by the groom's best man and was filmed by the bride's cousin's production company. At the end of the dance, the couple is seen giving their friends the traditional Maori greeting which involves pressing one's nose and forehead against the other person.

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