Maori Identity

In P re- European

ti mes,

bef or e coloni sati on Maori had thei r own uni que identi ty. Tribes of Maori were called Iwi and everybody belonged to one. Your iwi name was usually the name of a person who ranked highly within the tribe, a rangatira. E.g. Ngati (meaning, belonging to) Porou are the descendants of Porourangi who ruled most parts of the East Coast of the North Island.

Iwi Much like other people, Maori identity could be defined as having certain qualities that made them unique.

Maori had a language unique from any other country in the world. Although there were slight differences in dialects between tribes, the messages and meanings were never lost. Proverbs and genealogy were transferred through song, prayers and chants. Native speakers were great orators and story tellers. The native language was described by some as a ‘poetic’ language.

Iwi Reo

Maori had a strong and unique culture. Customs and protocols of the people, influenced their way of thinking and their way of living. Tribal differences were very slight. Visiting tribes always followed the tikanga of their hosts if they wished to return home safely and be welcomed again for a return visit.

The language is the vehicle which drives tikanga and kawa. Without it, what is our culture?

Iwi Kawa / Tikanga

Reo

Maori had their own laws. They had a system in which rules were made. They had lines of authority from the Rangatira (Chief) and Tohunga (Expert*) to the Mokai (slave).

Maori had control and power over their destiny. They were their own authority. They had their dignity, power and prestige intact.

Iwi Kawa / Tikanga

Mana

Reo

Ture

Maori had a system of learning that ensured that every person in the tribe became loyal and hardworking members of the tribe for the benefit of all.

The system valued both male and female genders and at times separated learning areas to cater for extensive or sensitive learning of their gender roles and responsibilities within the tribe.

Iwi Kawa / Tikanga

Mana

Reo

Akoranga

Ture

Maori had their land.

To the Maori, your genealogy doesn’t start from your grandparents and ancestors but to which mountain you bow to. What river/lake or sea you feed from. What marae shelters you. What sub-tribe you wear the cloak of. And what tribe you will one day stand to fight for.

Land was and is owned by the tribe. It was never for personal gain but more for the welfare of all members of the whanau, hapu and iwi.

Iwi Kawa / Tikanga

Mana

Whenua

Reo

Akoranga

Ture

As tribal numbers grew, some families broke away from the main village to build their own. This became a sub-tribe and was named after the ancestor that moved away. E.g. Ngati Konohi based themselves at Whangara, a tiny settlement in the East Coast of the North Island. The people there now are descendants of Konohi who moved his wives and children away from the main tribe. Porourangi is the first ancestor so this sub-tribe is still part of the larger tribe, Ngati Porou. Some Iwi have more than twenty different sub-tribes whilst some have as few as two.

Hapu

Iwi Kawa / Tikanga

Mana

Whenua

Reo

Akoranga

Ture

Within each hapu a family exists. This is the whānau. Unions between men and women by arrangement were generally to defuse a war, trade for land or integrate into another tribe thus gaining land and resources (much like a dowry). Marriages of choice were rare but great love stories have been important enough (and told enough) to become part of the Maori myths and legends of today.

whānau Hapu

Iwi Kawa / Tikanga

Mana

Whenua

Reo

Akoranga

Ture

Mauri is the life force. Maori believe that it exists in all things. Carvings, food, physical objects all have their own mauri, their reason for being. When Tane Mahuta breathed life into Hineahuone, part of his mauri passed through to her and she came to life.

Mauri

Hence the Tihei Mauri ora at the end of speeches. The sneeze of life.

whānau Hapu

Iwi Kawa / Tikanga

Mana

Whenua

Reo

Akoranga

Ture

Maori had their own spiritual beliefs. They believed in a supreme being and also that each area of the universe was under the guardianship of a caretaker.

Mauri

They prayed (Karakia) to the different guardians for good crops, safety, wellbeing, to give thanks etc, and sang their own waiata (songs) in chants much the same as other religious groups.

Wairua

whānau Hapu

Iwi Kawa / Tikanga

Mana

Whenua

Reo

Akoranga

Ture

Maori showed great respect for each other and their tribe. Men, women and children all knew their place. Elders were considered very wise and were cared for until their death. Their knowledge was passed down via oral stories and waiata.

Mauri Wairua

Whakaaute

whānau Hapu

Iwi Kawa / Tikanga

Mana

Whenua

Reo

Akoranga

Ture

Maori believed that whakamā played a major part in the discipline process and many proverbs are based around this concept.

Whakamā has many meanings such as shy, embarrass, shame, guilt, sensitive, degrade, remorse etc… depending on how it is used in a sentence.

Mauri Wairua

Whakamā

Whakaaute

whānau Hapu

Iwi Kawa / Tikanga

Mana

Whenua

Reo

Akoranga

Ture

Like whakamā, aroha also has many meanings. The most common is love. Some other meanings are: sorry, compassion, charity, mercy, pity, tenderness, endearment.

Aroha was another value that Maori treasured.

Mauri Wairua

Whakamā

Aroha

Whakaaute

whānau Hapu

Iwi Kawa / Tikanga

Mana

Whenua

Reo

Akoranga

Ture

Tino Rangatir ata nga Mauri Wairua

Whakamā

Aroha

Whakaaute

whānau Hapu

Iwi Kawa / Tikanga

Mana

Whenua

Reo

Akoranga

Ture

All of these qualities remained strong under the umbrella of Tino Rangatiratanga. Tino Rangatiratanga means independence. Maori were an independent race with strong values and an identiy.

What Happened?

What effect has colonisation had on Maori Identity?

Tino Rangatir ata nga Mauri Wairua

Whakamā

Aroha

Whakaaute

whānau Hapu

Iwi Kawa / Tikanga

Mana

Whenua

Reo

Akoranga

Tu

re

New laws were set by European, changing at whim to suit the European. Maori laws were disregarded .

Tino Rangatir ata nga Mauri Wairua

Whakamā

Aroha

Whakaaute

whānau Hapu

Land confiscations saw Maori lose millions of acres of land.

Iwi W

Mana

Kawa / Tikanga

h

e

n

u

a

Reo

Akoranga

Tu

re

Tino Rangatir ata nga Mauri Wairua

Whakamā

The mana of the Maori was weakened with the loss of a major part of their sense of belonging.

Ma

Aroha

Whakaaute

whānau Hapu

Iwi W na

Kawa / Tikanga

h

e

n

u

a

Reo

Akoranga

Tu

re

Tino Rangatir ata nga Mauri Wairua

Whakamā

Aroha

Whakaaute Missionaries were opening Native schools and Maori were being trained (hardly educated) to become ‘domestic’ help.

whānau Hapu

Iwi Ma

W na

Kawa / Tikanga

h

e

n

u

a

Reo

Ak

a or

a g n

Tu

re

Tino Rangatir ata nga Mauri Wairua

Whakamā

Aroha

Whakaaute

whānau Hapu

Iwi Ma

W na

Kawa / Tikanga

h

e

n

u

a

Re

o

Ak

a or

It becomes ‘illegal’ to speak Maori language in schools and Maori children were being punished for speaking in their native language.

a g n

Tu

re

Tino Rangatir ata nga Mauri Wairua Customs and traditions were being compromised as the language was diminishing. The less Maori language, the less the transfer and understanding of these qualitiesM an became. a

Whakamā

Aroha

Whakaaute

whānau Hapu

Iwi W

h

Kaw

e

n

u

a

Re

a ang k i T a/

o

Ak

a or

a g n

Tu

re

Maori Identity and their foundations are becoming unstable.

Tino Rangatir ata nga Mauri Wairua

Whakamā

Aroha

whānau Hapu

I wi Ma

W na

h

Kaw

e

n

u

a

Re

a ang k i T a/

o

A

r ko

a

a g n

Whakaaute As land is confiscated or sold, iwi head for the towns to work or to try to take their grievances to court. While away from their homes, more land is lost. They fight as independents e r and the Tu connections between the people start to unwind.

Tino Rangatir ata nga Mauri Wairua Hapu almost become nonexistent as tribes struggle to stay together. Many subtribes go back to the larger tribe and some become a forgotten M an people. a

Whakamā

Aroha

Whakaaute

whānau

I wi W

h

Kaw

e

n

u

a

Hapu

Re

a ang k i T a/

o

Ak

a or

a g n

Tu

re

Tino Rangatir ata nga Whānau become independent of the tribe and continue to coexist in towns and cities with the many new immigrants coming into the country. A whole generation misses the teachings of their elders due to the assimilation into the European world.

Mauri Wairua

Whakamā

Aroha

Whakaaute

whānau

I wi Ma

W na

h

Kaw

e

n

u

a

Hapu

Re

a ang k i T a/

o

Ak

a or

a g n

Tu

re

Tino Rangatir ata nga Mauri The old spiritual world of the Maori is almost lost. Only the Maori who didn’t leave their homelands have maintained some of the ‘old ways’. Esteem and pride of Maori are faltering. Missionaries continue to oust the ‘heathen ways’ of the Maori and teach them to be ‘civilised’.

ua r i a

W

Whakamā

Aroha

Whakaaute

whānau

I wi Ma

W na

h

Kaw

e

n

u

a

Hapu

Re

a ang k i T a/

o

Ak

a or

a g n

Tu

re

Tino Rangatir ata nga Mauri ua r i a

W

Whakamā

Aroha whānau

Pu Ma kuri ma ri e Respect has been replaced by anger and hurt.

I wi Ma

W na

h

Kaw

e

n

u

a

Hapu

Re

a ang k i T a/

o

Ak

a or

a g n

Tu

re

Tino Rangatir ata nga Mauri ua r i a

W

Whakamā

a h o Ar

Pu Ma kuri ma ri e

whānau

I wi Ma

W na

h

Kaw

e

n

u

a

Hapu

Re

a ang k i T a/

o

A

r ko

a

a g n

Tu

r

Aroha only means LOVE and SORRY now. But there is little to give outside of the nuclear whānau. e

And what of Independence?

T in Ra o ng a

tir

Mauri ua r i a

W

Whakamā

ata

a h o Ar

ng

a

Pu Ma kuri ma ri e

whānau

I wi Ma

W na

h

Kaw

e

n

u

a

Hapu

Re

a ang k i T a/

o

Ak

a or

a g n

Tu

re

To ponder… • With all of the qualities ofRMaori falling away, what Tin happens to Independence? a n g o a t i r no solid • Tino Rangatiratanga has no foundation, ata walls and only a life force holding it up…. But Mauri n g can it a Whakamā ua do it alone? r i a Pu Wa oh r A • Can Independence be supported by Shame Ma kurand ma iri Embarrassment? Should whānau it? e • And what of the whānau. Are they able to maintain the values of their whole identity as a people without the beginning (tribe)? I wi ikanga a / T ‘Evolution’, who or what • If we call the loss of culture w a K W a h do Maori become? g Re Ma e re an n na o u r T u o • If we accept to call it Evolution, whose beliefs and a k A values become the ‘new’ Maori identity and will Maori be known by that new identity? Hapu