Maori

Maui's jealous brothers don't want him to come fishing with them. But clever Maui catches the best fish of all.

In eight remarkable oral histories, Ngá Mórehu brings alive the experience of Máori women from the mid-twentieth century. Heni Brown , Reremoana Koopu,Maaka Jones, Hei Ariki Algie, Heni Sunderland , Miria Rua, Putiputi Onekawaand Te Akakura Rua talked with Judith Binney and Gillian Chaplin, sharing stories andmemories. These are the women whose ‘voices must be heard’.The title, ‘the survivors’, refects the women’s connection with the visionary leader Te Kooti Arikirangi Te Turuki ... read more

To read the life histories of these women is a rare privilege. We are swept up into a world of pain, poverty and the sheer grind of daily life in rural villages. … Throughout all the narrativesthere is a strong sense of taha wairua – spiritual beliefs instilled by infuential whanau elders.To read these stories is to become enveloped in a brilliantly patterned cloak where all the strongthreads are bound together with warmth and aroha. Keri Kaa, NZ Listener , 30 May 1987 For much of women’s history, memory is the only way of discovering the past. Other sourcessimply do ..read more

These 50 interesting and entertaining projects are designed to teach beginners the basic skills of the Maori craft of plaiting. Fun with Flax shows how to make items ranging from a simple windmill, a dart and a whistle to more complex puzzles, balls, birds, fish and even a caterpillar. Each project is described one step at a time with easy-to-follow line drawings and instructions. All are fun and will delight children and adults with their ingenuity, their beauty and the amusement they provide. This book is ideal for kohanga reo, p... read more

Patricia and Waiariki Grace's lyrical translations and explanations of Maori poetry and traditional wisdom are presented alongside Craig Potton's evocative New Zealand landscape photographs. This stunning result of this collaboration will appeal to New Zealanders and visitors alike who will appreciate a sensitive and thoughtful insight into the Maori world.

The story of Pania of the Reef is well known and loved in New Zealand. In this Puffin picture book, Peter Gossage illustrates this popular story with beautiful pictures and easy-to-read text.

Maori form a significant proportion of the modern New Zealand Army, and Maori officers have achieved the very highest commands, their unique culture is deeply embedded in its tradition and daily routines; celebrated by Maori (indigenous) and pakeha (non-indigenous) soldiers alike. The exploits of the 28th (Maori) Battalion in WWll - peerless in attack - are well-remembered. Not so well known is the major Maori contribution to the Allied cause in the Great War. Maori were quick to respond in 1914. Over five times as many as the spec... read more

Weaving is more than just a product of manual skills. From the simple rourou (food basket) to the prestigious kahukiwi (kiwi feather cloak), weaving is endowed with the very essence of the spiritual values of Maori people. The first Maori settlers brought the knowledge of weaving with them. In Aotearoa they found new plant materials, including the versatile harakeke (New Zealand flax). They also incorporated feathers from birds and the skin and hair of their dogs. They wove practical items necessary for everyday life. But they also... read more

Rua Kenana was an extraordinary prophetic leader from the Urewera. Resisting threats toexpel the Tühoe people from their ancestral lands, he established a remarkable communityat Maungapohatu, identifying himself as the ‘Míhaia’ or ‘Messiah’ for Túhoe. Judith Binney, Gillian Chaplin and Craig Wallace researched the history of the communityin the 1970s, working frst with a collection of photographs that they took to the Urewera.Sharing these photographs with descendants of Rua and his follow... read more

This book traces Maori engagement with handwriting from 1769 to 1826. Through beautifully reproduced written documents, it describes the first encounters Maori had with paper and writing and the first relationships between Maori and Europeans in the earliest school. The book tells an image-led story about the earliest relationships between Maori and Pakeha based around the written word and sheds light on a larger story of the first attempts of Maori and Europeans to live together in the early 1800s, the negotiation of the r... read more

Faced with too short days and long nights Maui comes up with a plan to slow the sun's passage through the sky. With the help of his brothers, Maui sets out for the home of the sun to catch it and make it move more slowly.

Our elder grandmothers instructed the teachers of the families to: "hide our nation, hide our information, hide our belief systems in the wananga of silence, to wait the time of Tumstswera..." The teachers kept everything hidden in the mokopuna. The grandchild became the nation's library and all information was concealed inside the minds of the mokopuna. Whispers of Waitaha: traditions of a nation tells simply of the oral transfer of information from grandparent to grandchild. This transfer, allowing for the "moko", design and th... read more

In Nga Taonga Takaro, Harko Brown writes about the revival of more than 20 ancient games and sports of the Maori - including poi, stick games, kites, ball games, memory games, and board games. He traces the history and legend behind each game, and gives clear instructions on how to play, the rules of the game, and how to create the equipment used. The games are illustrated with action colour photographs throughout, to enhance readers' understanding of these indigenous sports. Traditional Maori games were used to transfer skills and... read more

Te Reo Maori Literary Award He Pâtaka Kupu: te kai a te rangatira is a taonga - a Mâori-only language resource, compiled out of seven years' research by the Mâori Language Commission. Containing over 22,000 entries, it is a comprehensive and authoritative dictionary of the Mâori language, for proficient Mâori speakers. For each entry, the dictionary gives the âtua category, parts of speech, definitions, examples of the word used in context, and an etymology of the word, drawing on a wide corpus of written material in te reo

A long-awaited dictionary with headwords, definitions, synonyms, and passives wholly in te reo Maori, Tirohia Kimihia will be welcomed by both fluent speakers and learners of te reo Maori. Teachers can use it to support literacy and language development for students aged 8-12 years. Students can use it to enrich their vocabulary, develop their dictionary and research skills, check spellings and meanings of words, or simply take pleasure in exploring words in te reo Maori. Ko Tirohia Kimihia te papakupu tuatahi kua tuhia ki te r... read more

This book is a Finalist in the Picture Book Category, New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards 2010.

In Maori.
Everyone loved Old Hu-Hu. But nobody loved him quite as much as little Hu-Hu-Tu. Old Hu-Hu is a thoughtful tale of young Hu-Hu-Tu's search for understanding of what has happened to his beloved Old Hu-Hu, who flew all the way to the moon (or so they said), then fell down dead. Sensitively written, this is a beautiful story of death and the celebration of life, with powerful, evocative illustrations by Rach... read more

Having a baby? Finding it hard to choose a name? Even if you are a non-Maori, this could be a vital book for you to look through. The book provides transliteration of English names to Maori ( e.g. April is Aperira in Maori), as well as a guide to traditional names such as Titi, which means a ray of light. Translations are given for every name, and the book is divided into Boys and Girls names, translating from Maori to English and from English to Maori. There is also a short pronunciation guide, so you can be sure of pronoun... read more

To Maori, the governing principle of mauri brings to all objects the power and prescience of a living spirit. Objects that are hand-crafted from wood, stone, shell, bone or pounamu are imbued with life by their creators. Conveying the mauri of an object through photography requires an exceptional talent, one focused on distilling the essential energy of the original piece through shades of lighting, position and perspective. This is what Brian Brake achieved. The photos in this collection constitute the best of Brake's photographic... read more

Maui wants to know two things: who is his father and where does his mother go during the day? One day he follows her and finds himself in the underworld.

This dictionary and index comprises a selection of modern and everyday language that will be extremely useful for learners of the Maori language. it has a broader scope than traditional dictionaries, so as well as the words one would usually expect in a dictionary, it also includes: encyclopaedic entries designed to provide key information about plants, animals (including sh and insects), stars, planets, heavenly bodies, important Maori people, key ancestors of traditional narratives, tribal groups, ancestral canoes, song types, t... read more

"At last our story is told. Now the brave ancestors we have hidden for so long stand again for all to see." With these words the Elders of Waitaha tell us that their ancient and sacred lore is shared for the first time. Bound in secrecy for centuries, protected through the ages by those who gave their lives to keep it safe, this knowledge travels out of the past to be revealed in Song of Waitaha. Song of Waitaha repairs the torn fabric of our past and opens doors into the future. The Histories tell of a society where many peoples w... read more