Maori Identity

Iwi In Pre-European times, before colonisation Maori had their own unique identity. 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. Much like other people, Maori identity could be defined as having certain qualities that made them unique.

Reo Iwi 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.

Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga 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?

Mana Ture Reo Iwi Maori had control and power over their destiny. They were their own authority. They had their dignity, power and prestige intact. 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). Kawa / Tikanga

Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga 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.

Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga 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.

Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu 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.

Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Within each hapu a family exists. This is the wh ā nau. 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.

Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Mauri 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. Hence the Tihei Mauri ora at the end of speeches. The sneeze of life.

Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Mauri 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. They prayed (Karakia) to the different guardians for good crops, safety, well-being, to give thanks etc, and sang their own waiata (songs) in chants much the same as other religious groups.

Whakaaute Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Mauri 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.

Whakam ā Whakaaute Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Mauri Maori believed that whakam ā 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.

Aroha Whakam ā Whakaaute Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Mauri Like whakam ā, 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.

Aroha Whakam ā Whakaaute Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Mauri Tino Rangatiratanga 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?

Aroha Whakam ā Whakaaute Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Mauri Tino Rangatiratanga New laws were set by European, changing at whim to suit the European. Maori laws were disregarded.

Aroha Whakam ā Whakaaute Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Mauri Tino Rangatiratanga Land confiscations saw Maori lose millions of acres of land.

Aroha Whakam ā Whakaaute Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Mauri Tino Rangatiratanga The mana of the Maori was weakened with the loss of a major part of their sense of belonging.

Aroha Whakam ā Whakaaute Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Mauri Tino Rangatiratanga Missionaries were opening Native schools and Maori were being trained (hardly educated) to become ‘domestic’ help.

Aroha Whakam ā Whakaaute Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Mauri Tino Rangatiratanga It becomes ‘illegal’ to speak Maori language in schools and Maori children were being punished for speaking in their native language.

Aroha Whakam ā Whakaaute Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Mauri Tino Rangatiratanga Customs and traditions were being compromised as the language was diminishing. The less Maori language, the less the transfer and understanding of these qualities became. Maori Identity and their foundations are becoming unstable.

Aroha Whakam ā Whakaaute Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Mauri Tino Rangatiratanga 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 and the connections between the people start to unwind.

Aroha Whakam ā Whakaaute Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Mauri Tino Rangatiratanga Hapu almost become non-existent as tribes struggle to stay together. Many sub-tribes go back to the larger tribe and some become a forgotten people.

Mauri Aroha Whakam ā Whakaaute Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Tino Rangatiratanga Wh ānau become independent of the tribe and continue to co-exist 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 Aroha Whakam ā Whakaaute Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Tino Rangatiratanga 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’.

Mauri Aroha Whakam ā Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Tino Rangatiratanga Pukuriri Mamae Respect has been replaced by anger and hurt.

Mauri Aroha Whakam ā Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Tino Rangatiratanga Pukuriri Mamae Aroha only means LOVE and SORRY now. But there is little to give outside of the nuclear wh ānau.

Mauri Aroha Whakam ā Wairua Whenua Akoranga Mana Ture Reo Iwi Kawa / Tikanga Hapu wh ānau Tino Rangatiratanga Pukuriri Mamae And what of Independence?

To ponder…
With all of the qualities of Maori falling away, what happens to Independence?
Tino Rangatiratanga has no foundation, no solid walls and only a life force holding it up…. But can it do it alone?
Can Independence be supported by Shame and Embarrassment? Should it?
And what of the wh ānau. Are they able to maintain the values of their whole identity as a people without the beginning (tribe)?
If we call the loss of culture ‘Evolution’, who or what do Maori become?
If we accept to call it Evolution, whose beliefs and values become the ‘new’ Maori identity and will Maori be known by that new identity?
Pukuriri Mamae Wairua Mana Hapu Ture Akoranga Reo Whenua Kawa / Tikanga Iwi Tino Rangatiratanga Aroha Mauri Whakam ā wh ānau

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Maori Identity

by aurerenz on May 30, 2007

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