Whakapaparanga - Social Structure, Leadership and Whāngai Flashcards
Who are Maori?
Indigenous peoples of New Zealand, the tangata whenua.
Why is the term Maori used?
It’s used to distinguish from non-Maori. It also means ‘common’ or ‘usual’. So before Europeans arrived, Maori weren’t called Maori, they were just known by their tribal affiliations. When Europeans arrived, Maori saw themselves as the normal, everyday people of the land.
What do tribal names begin with, and what do they mean?
Ngati, Ngai and Kai mean ‘the people of’.
Te Uri o means ‘the descendants of’.
Te Whanau A means ‘the family of’.
The Māori worldview is…
…holistic and cyclic
A world view is…
… a framework of ideas and beliefs through which an individual interprets the world and interacts with it.
List and describe the Maori societal structure starting at the smallest unit.
Whanau: Immediate and extended family (great grandparents to cousins).
Hapu: Subtribe
Iwi: Tribe
Waka: Where Maori can affiliate back to the arrival of tangata whenua in NZ.
Where does the name of someone’s waka come from?
A waka is a boat, so the name comes from the name of the waka that their ancestors arrived on.
Where does the name of someone’s iwi come from?
Iwi is the name of an ancestor who may have been on the waka.
Where does the name of someone’s hapu come from?
The name of the hapu comes from the name of an ancestor who started that subtribe.
Why is affiliating with a waka important to Maori?
Allows them to trace back to their origins, gives a sense of identity and belonging. It forms relationships as kinship and societal structure are based on this origin.
The leader of an iwi is called…
Ariki
The leader of a hapu is called…
Rangatira
The leaders of a whanau are…
The Kaumatua: male leader or grandfather
The Kuia: female leader or grandmother
Why is it important in Maori culture to affiliate with an iwi? How are contemporary iwi different to traditional iwi?
An iwi is a loose confederation; a number of hapu that can come together with a common ancestor which links them.
Traditionally iwi were acknowledged and would come together for a common cause, particularly warfare and building. So you would have known about your iwi and if you needed more people for something you could rely on that.
Now they are much more important since treaty settlements. It’s become essential to belong to an iwi in order to function in society; the government won’t recognise an iwi unless it’s a corporation, so they play a much bigger role now.
Why is it important in Maori culture to affiliate with an hapu? How are contemporary hapu different to traditional hapu?
Hapu is your subtribe; it essentially means to ‘swell’ like how families swell. A social and political group working for the benefit of the community made up of a number of whanau.
Traditionally there was everyday interaction; gardening, fishing, preparing for warfare. Due to migration and urbanisation there is less of that. Boundaries have also become more defined and permanent. Traditionally where a hapu lived was based on the concepts of ahi-ka and ahi-matoo; if nobody is there to keep the fire burning then that land is free for someone else.
Traditionally which level of the societal structure was the most prominent?
The hapu, because this was the unit people functioned as pre-contact.
How does the structure of whanau differ to the European idea of family?
A lot bigger than European idea of family. ○ Immediate and extended family (great grandparents to cousins).
How has the concept of whanau changed over time?
Whanau can now be used to describe a group with a common interest/goal.
Translate: Tupuna
Ancestor
Translate: Kaumatua
Male leader of whanau/grandfather
