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Ngā Toki Matawhaorua
Ngā Toki Matawhaorua of Pewhairangi, often simply known as Ngā Toki, is the name of a New Zealand waka taua (large, ornately carved Māori war canoe). It is named after Matawhaorua, the canoe of Kupe, the Polynesian discoverer of the islands now known as New Zealand; Kupe's canoe was later re-adzed and renamed Ngātokimatawhaorua. It was built in 1940 at the instigation of Te Puea Herangi for the centenary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. It was refurbished by master waka builder and navigator Hekenukumai Ngā Iwi (Hector) Busby in 1974 for relaunching during the Waitangi Day ceremonies at Waitangi, Northland and has been paddled periodically since that time. Ngā Toki can carry 80 paddlers and 55 other passengers. It is the largest canoe in New Zealand, measuring 35.7 metres (123 ft) long and up to 2 metres (6.56 ft) wide. It held the Guinness World Record for the world's longest canoe until July 12, 2006, when it was supplanted by a canoe built in Newport, Maine ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hector Busby
Sir Hector Busby (1 August 1932 – 11 May 2019), also known as Heke-nuku-mai-nga-iwi Puhipi and Hec Busby, was a New Zealand Māori navigator and traditional waka builder. He was recognised as a leading figure in the revival of traditional Polynesian navigation and ocean voyaging using wayfinding techniques. He built 26 traditional waka, including the double-hulled '' Te Aurere'' which has sailed over 30,000 nautical miles in the Pacific including Hawaii, Cook Islands, French Polynesia, New Caledonia and Norfolk Island. In December 2012, ''Te Aurere'' and ''Ngahiraka Mai Tawhiti'' (another waka built by Busby) reached Rapa Nui after a 5000-nautical-mile, four-month voyage from New Zealand. The two waka then made the return journey to New Zealand, landing at Aurere Beach in Doubtless Bay in May 2013. Honours Busby received the New Zealand Commemoration Medal in 1990. In the 1994 Queen's Birthday Honours, he was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire, for serv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Polynesian Navigation
Polynesian navigation or Polynesian wayfinding was used for thousands of years to enable long voyages across thousands of kilometers of the Pelagic zone, open Pacific Ocean. Polynesians made contact with nearly every island within the vast Polynesian Triangle, using outrigger canoes or double-hulled canoes. The double-hulled canoes were two large hulls, equal in length, and lashed side by side. The space between the paralleled canoes allowed for storage of food, hunting materials, and nets when embarking on long voyages. Polynesian navigators used wayfinding techniques such as the navigation by the stars, and observations of birds, ocean swells, and wind patterns, and relied on a large body of knowledge from oral tradition. Navigators travelled to small inhabited islands using wayfinding techniques and knowledge passed by oral tradition from master to apprentice, often in the form of song. Generally, each island maintained a guild of navigators who had very high status; in times ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Guinness World Record
''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world records both of human achievements and the extremes of the natural world. The brainchild of Sir Hugh Beaver, the book was co-founded by twin brothers Norris and Ross McWhirter in Fleet Street, London, in August 1955. The first edition topped the best-seller list in the United Kingdom by Christmas 1955. The following year the book was launched internationally, and as of the 2022 edition, it is now in its 67th year of publication, published in 100 countries and 23 languages, and maintains over 53,000 records in its database. The international franchise has extended beyond print to include television series and museums. The popularity of the franchise has resulted in ''Guinness World Records'' becoming the primary international authority o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Northland (New Zealand Electorate)
Northland is a New Zealand parliamentary electorate, returning one Member of Parliament to the New Zealand House of Representatives. The electorate was established for the 1996 election. It was represented by National Party MP John Carter from 1996 to 2011, and then National's Mike Sabin until his resignation on 30 January 2015. The by-election in March 2015 was won by New Zealand First party leader Winston Peters. Peters was defeated by National's Matt King in the 2017 general election. King in turn was defeated by the Labour Party's Willow-Jean Prime in the 2020 general election, who became the first Labour MP elected for the area since the party won the predecessor electorate Bay of Islands in 1938. Population centres Northland is the northernmost general electorate of New Zealand. The electorate encompasses the entire Far North District and Kaipara District, and a small rural section of Whangarei District. At the 2008 election, the town of Wellsford became part of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Waitangi, Northland
Waitangi ( or , ) is a locality in the Bay of Islands on the North Island of New Zealand. It is close to the town of Paihia (of which it is considered a part), 60 kilometres north of Whangarei. "Waitangi" is a Māori-language name meaning "weeping waters". The Treaty of Waitangi was first signed at Waitangi on February 6, 1840. It is also the place where the Declaration of Independence of New Zealand was signed five years earlier, on October 28, 1835. This document was ratified by the British Crown the following year (1836). History and culture Signing of Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi proper began on February 5, 1840 when a public meeting was held on the grounds in front of James Busby's residence. Lieutenant Governor Hobson read a proposed document to the 300 or so European and Māori who were in attendance and then provided the Māori chiefs an opportunity to speak. Initially, a large number of chiefs (including Te Kemara, Rewa and Moka Te Kainga-mataa) sp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Waitangi Day
Waitangi Day ( mi, Te Rā o Waitangi), the national day of New Zealand, marks the anniversary of the initial signing – on 6 February 1840 – of the Treaty of Waitangi, which is regarded as the founding document of the nation. The first Waitangi Day was not celebrated until 1934, and it was made a national public holiday in 1974. In present-day New Zealand, the anniversary is observed annually on 6 February and the day is usually recognised as a public holiday (if the date falls on a Saturday or Sunday then the following Monday is observed as the public holiday). Ceremonies take place at Waitangi and elsewhere to commemorate the signing of the treaty. A variety of events are staged, including parties, Māori hui (social gatherings), reflections on New Zealand history, official awards and citizenship ceremonies. The commemoration has also been the focus of protest by Māori activists, and is occasionally the focus of controversy. History The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The New Zealand Herald
''The New Zealand Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Auckland, New Zealand, owned by New Zealand Media and Entertainment, and considered a newspaper of record for New Zealand. It has the largest newspaper circulation of all newspapers in New Zealand, peaking at over 200,000 copies in 2006, although circulation of the daily ''Herald'' had declined to 100,073 copies on average by September 2019. Its main circulation area is the Auckland region. It is also delivered to much of the upper North Island including Northland, Waikato and King Country. History ''The New Zealand Herald'' was founded by William Chisholm Wilson, and first published on 13 November 1863. Wilson had been a partner with John Williamson in the ''New Zealander'', but left to start a rival daily newspaper as he saw a business opportunity with Auckland's rapidly growing population. He had also split with Williamson because Wilson supported the war against the Māori (which the ''Herald'' termed "the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island country by area, covering . New Zealand is about east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and south of the islands of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga. The country's varied topography and sharp mountain peaks, including the Southern Alps, owe much to tectonic uplift and volcanic eruptions. New Zealand's capital city is Wellington, and its most populous city is Auckland. The islands of New Zealand were the last large habitable land to be settled by humans. Between about 1280 and 1350, Polynesians began to settle in the islands and then developed a distinctive Māori culture. In 1642, the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman became the first European to sight and record New Zealand. In 1840, representatives of the United Kingdom and Māori chiefs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Treaty Of Waitangi
The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in the treatment of the Māori population in New Zealand, by successive governments and the wider population, a role that has been especially prominent from the late 20th century. The treaty document is an agreement, not a treaty as recognised in international law and it has no independent legal status, being legally effective only to the extent it is recognised in various statutes. It was first signed on 6 February 1840 by Captain William Hobson as consul for the British Crown and by Māori chiefs () from the North Island of New Zealand. The treaty was written at a time when the New Zealand Company, acting on behalf of large numbers of settlers and would-be settlers, were establishing a colony in New Zealand, and when some Māori leaders had petitioned the Briti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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