Māori Culture

Māori culture () is the customs, cultural practices, and beliefs of the indigenous Māori people of New Zealand. It originated from, and is still part of, Eastern Polynesian culture. Māori culture forms a distinctive part of New Zealand culture and, due to a large diaspora and the incorporation of Māori motifs into popular culture, it is found throughout the world. Within Māoridom, and to a lesser extent throughout New Zealand as a whole, the word is often used as an approximate synonym for Māori culture, the Māori-language suffix being roughly equivalent to the qualitative noun-ending ''-ness'' in English. has also been translated as " Māori way of life."

Four distinct but overlapping cultural eras have contributed historically to Māori culture:
* before Māori culture had differentiated itself from other Polynesian cultures (Archaic period)
* before widespread European contact (Classic period)
* the 19th century, in which Māori began interacting more intensively with European visitors and settlers
* the modern era since the beginning of the twentieth century

in the modern era has been shaped by increasing urbanisation, closer contact with Pākehā (New Zealanders of European descent) and revival of traditional practices.

Traditional Māori arts play a large role in New Zealand art. They include (carving), (weaving), (group performance), (oratory), and (tattoo). The patterns and characters represented record the beliefs and genealogies () of Māori. Practitioners often follow the techniques of their ancestors, but in the 21st century Māoritanga also includes contemporary arts such as film, television, poetry and theatre.

The Māori language is known as , shortened to (literally, "the language"). At the beginning of the twentieth century, it seemed as if – as well as other aspects of Māori life – might disappear. In the 1980s, however, government-sponsored schools ( Kura Kaupapa Māori) began to teach in , educating those with European as well as those with Māori ancestry.

Tikanga Māori is a set of cultural values, customs, and practices. This includes concepts such as what is sacred, caring for your community, rights to land by occupation, and other relationships between people and their environment. Tikanga differs from a western ethical or judicial systems because it is not administered by an central authority or an authoritative set of documents. It is a more fluid and dynamic set of practices and community accountability is "the most effective mechanism for enforcing tikanga."

History

Māori cultural history intertwines inextricably with the culture of Polynesia as a whole. The New Zealand archipelago forms the southwestern corner of the Polynesian Triangle, a major part of the Pacific Ocean with three island groups at its corners: the Hawaiian Islands, Rapa Nui (Easter Island), and New Zealand ( Aotearoa in Māori). The many island cultures within the Polynesian Triangle share similar languages derived from a proto-Malayo-Polynesian language used in southeastern Asia 5,000 years ago. Polynesians also share cultural traditions such as religion, social organisation, myths, and material culture. Anthropologists believe that all Polynesians descend from a South Pacific proto-culture developed by an Austronesian (Malayo-Polynesian) people who had migrated from southeastern Asia. (Other main Polynesian cultures include those of: Rapa Nui (now known as Easter Island), Hawaii, the Marquesas, Samoa, Tahiti, Tonga, and the Cook Islands.) Over the last five millennia, proto-Polynesians and their descendants performed a sequence of complicated and remarkable transoceanic treks in an unprecedented accomplishment of navigation and curiosity. The final segments of these feats crossed extreme and unmatched distances: to Hawaii, Rapa Nui, and Aotearoa.

Polynesian seafarers were ocean navigators and astronomers. Polynesians would travel long distances by sea. The strong female presence among early settlers in New Zealand suggests that Polynesian migration voyages were not accidental but deliberate. The most current reliable evidence strongly indicates that initial settlement of New Zealand occurred around 1280 CE from the Society Islands. In 1769 the experienced Society Island navigator Tupaia joined Captain Cook in the ''Endeavour'' on his voyage south. Despite a gap of many hundreds of years, Tupaia was able to understand the Māori language, which was very similar to the language he spoke. His presence and ability to translate avoided much of the friction that occurred between other European explorers and Māori in New Zealand. European sailors, including Cook, found Polynesian sailors lost at sea, suggesting that by the mid-18th century knowledge of long-distance navigation was not ubiquitous.

Archaic period c.1300 AD

Researchers often label the time from about 1280 to about 1450 the Archaic period or "Moa-hunter period" – after the moa, the large flightless bird that formed a large part of the diet of the early Polynesian settlers. During this period Māori adapted to their new environment, but culturally they changed little from their tropical Pacific ancestors. The immigrants brought many edible plants from their home islands in the central Pacific, and of these ''kūmara'' (sweet potato) would become the most important. The far South of Aotearoa, however, had too cold a climate for growing any of these crops. Large quantities of tī tubers were eaten that were slow-cooked in large or (earth ovens) to get rid of the poison and to produce a slightly sweet pulp. Shellfish, fish, sharks and seals were also common foods. Native dogs () and rats were brought from the Pacific Islands. The introduction of rats undoubtedly had more impact on New Zealand wildlife than any other organism apart from humans. The dogs aided in hunting but also served as food.

The new environment offered challenges to the Polynesian settlers. The colder climate meant that tropical staple crops needed careful cultivation to survive, and some failed to grow locally. Kūmara was an important crop that arrived with the Polynesian settlers. Much of the activity to produce kūmara became ritualised – it was even associated with Rongomātāne (Rongo), a high-ranking (god). (Kūmara featured in some (proverbs): "" (the kūmara does not speak of its own sweetness) encouraged people to be modest.)

Seasonal activities included gardening, fishing and the hunting of birds.

These early colonists explored New Zealand to find suitable stones for tool-making. The main stone-source areas included Mayor Island, Taupo and Kerikeri for obsidian (volcanic glass); prospectors soon found (greenstone or jade) and (argillite) resources in the South Island in the areas of present-day Reefton and Nelson. Basalt was later also found which is prospected to have a use in construction. Stone served in all aspects of Polynesian life: from chopping wood to cutting and slicing food, as anchors for (canoes) and for fishing nets, for retaining the heat in a , as drills using chert, and for stone clubs. These practices, well preserved at the Wairau Bar archeological site, were typical of East Polynesian culture at the same time.

Two Polynesian artefacts link early settlers to Polynesia. One, a turret shell only found in the South Pacific islands, most notably in the Society Islands, has been reworked into a small chisel found at Wairau Bar and dated to about 1300. The other is a 6 cm-long Polynesian pearl fishing-lure found at Tairua in 1962. This lure has been reliably dated to the early- to mid-14th century. It was found at a typical small coastal moa-hunters' site which has been interpreted as an itinerant hunting camp (). The discovery of Mayor Island obsidian on the Kermadec Islands, halfway between New Zealand and Tonga, strongly suggests that return journeys were made.

The new land also provided new opportunities: Māori learned to use local resources like pounamu, native timber, and the abundant birdlife, producing practical tools or food, as well as beautiful ornaments and items of clothing. This adaptation to the opportunities and challenges of the new environment led to the development of the Classic Māori culture.

Classic period c.1500 AD

Māori artifacts began to change around the 15th century from an East Polynesian style to one more recognisably "classic" Māori, a style which persisted well into the contact period in the 18th and 19th centuries. At the same time, Māori groups became less nomadic, more settled in defined territories, and more dependent on gardening as a food source. Reliance on stored food such as kūmara tubers meant that stores needed to be protected from marauding neighbours. The widespread construction of large fortifications called on prominent hills and spurs dates from this time, as evidence of the development of a more martial, tribal culture. Not all aspects of this culture occurred universally, particularly in the South Island where kūmara could not be easily grown.

Cultural change with European colonisation from 1800 AD

Very few Europeans arrived in New Zealand in the 18th and early 19th centuries, thus the core values of Māori culture altered little at first. Henry Williams estimated a scant 1100 Europeans in the North Island in 1839, with 200 of them missionaries, and a total of about 500–600 Europeans in the Bay of Islands. The northern Māori population at the time has been estimated at 30,000 to 40,000, down from about 100,000 fifty years before. This drop in population was mostly due to the introduction of European diseases ( measles and influenza) and to the Musket Wars of 1807–1837.

Samuel Marsden of New South Wales established Aotearoa's first Christian mission in 1814 in the Bay of Islands. Because the missionaries depended on Māori for many basic necessities, they traded muskets and iron tools for food. By the time this practice was discouraged by Henry Williams and finally prohibited by the governor, it had already significantly altered intertribal conflict, which quickly led to th
Musket Wars
of the 1820s and a dramatic increase in conflict casualties. Alcohol was not present in Māori culture before European contact and its introduction had a negative effect on individual and collective health. Many Māori supported Henry Williams who opposed "the activities of grog-sellers, gun-runners and other irreligious Europeans in the Bay of Islands". The mission at " Paihia, directly opposite the notoriously lawless settlement of Kororāreka (later Russell), as set upto contrast Christianity with the decadent forms of European life".

Missionaries report being appalled at the violent behaviour of Māori - the warfare, slavery, cannibalism, sexual abuse of women, killing of female children and revenge killings. However, by 1840, many of these customs were all but abandoned or not publicly practised.

In the coastal South Island, the Māori population was very small. Whalers, often based in New South Wales, set up shore stations along the southern and eastern coasts and formed Māori–European working communities. In the early 1800s chiefs commonly provided Māori wives - often their daughters - to whalers. By the 1820s European men had married about 200 Māori women in the coastal area between present-day Christchurch and Invercargill, about half of all the marriageable-aged women in the South Island – in fact, Māori men started to find it hard to compete for wives.

After 1800 whaling ships from America, France, Norway, Spain, and the East India Company visited regularly; this set the conditions for a period of trade which benefited all. Contact with Europeans enabled Māori to access the material culture of Great Britain, then the most advanced industrial country in the world. Desirable steel objects and blankets were at first traded for fish. Māori generally showed much curiosity about European culture after initial misunderstandings and apprehension - Māori showed great ability to accept changes and to integrate these into their normal way of life The French expedition of Marion du Fresne, which visited Aotearoa in 1772, gave northern Māori potatoes, wheat, onions, goats, pigs, chickens and other food to raise. Potatoes and pigs rapidly became a key part of Māori agriculture in the north, but the new food was almost exclusively reserved for trading purposes, with Māori themselves still eating fish and fern roots, supplemented by kūmara. Later, as Māori grew large areas of potatoes (Hongi Hika had a 40-acre potato field), whalers would call into the Bay of Islands, in particular, to trade for fresh supplies.

A significant change involved the immediacy of reciprocation in trade. In traditional Māori tikanga, when an item was given there was no expectation of immediate response, as gifted items were mainly food, which was governed by seasonal supply. When dealing with Europeans, Māori learnt that immediate payment was expected. Gift-giving was a different matter in Māori culture. Gifts were given to recognise (power or authority).

The Māori economy changed rapidly in the course of the 19th century. After the 1840 signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, Auckland (founded in September 1840) became the commercial centre of New Zealand and Māori quickly adapted their communal social system to take advantage of increased trade in a period of economic expansion. They invested their collective profits in ploughs, mills, carts, and ships to transport their goods. In this period as before, Māori remained the primary producers of agricultural goods. The first Māori water-powered mill was built in 1846
and over fifty more had been built by 1860.

Burial practices changed to incorporate aspects of Christianity. Bodies were usually buried in the ground by the mid-1840s, although sometimes coffins decorated with Māori motifs were used, suspended in trees or on poles as drawn by J. Polack. These were highly .

Slaves ( or ) were members of rival tribes who had been taken prisoner during warfare and were made to work on non- activities. The term was also used to denote something abhorrent and signifies the complete loss of of slaves. There is little direct information on Māori slaves before the Musket Wars. Oral tradition records that slavery was practised, but early European explorers speculated that it must be rare or even absent. During the unusual period of the Musket Wars, however, the number of slaves taken as prisoners increased immensely and became an important part of some tribes' social structure.

Generally, only female slaves were kept as they were considered to be less of a threat and more useful as potato-farmers and as partners. In 1834 the Ngāpuhi iwi, perhaps partly due to the influence of missionaries such as Henry Williams, freed slaves they had captured in earlier wars, The only place in New Zealand where slavery was common after 1835 was the Chatham Islands (part of the Colony of New Zealand from 1842). During the Musket Wars, North Taranaki tribes Ngati Tama and Ngati Mutanga invaded the Chathams, massacred the indigenous Moriori and enslaved the remaining population until about 1863.

Early Māori dried () and displayed the heads of fallen enemies and practised cannibalism. One possible motivation for mokomokai practices is that they provided a reminder of the deceased, or a trophy made from the heads of slain enemies. Another possibility was that it was a ritualistic way of capturing the enemies' - heads of chiefs, in particular, were very . Heads might be returned in an effort to settle a tribal disagreement, but traditionally they were never traded. Later, in their desire to obtain European muskets and powder in the 1820s, northern Māori produced a profusion of tattooed severed heads - sometimes manufactured using the bodies of slaves or prisoners - for sale to traders.

Māori culture had undergone more significant alteration by the 1850s. With their ethnocentric assumption that Christian European culture was superior, missionaries can be seen as the "cutting edge of colonialism" because their mission was literally to transform Māori culture. But with the proclamation of New Zealand as a British colony in 1841 and the establishment of the New Zealand Parliament in 1852, an important political shift occurred which set up the conditions for much conflict between Māori and the new European immigrants (Pākehā). The attitudes of cultural superiority were also baked into the politics of the colony. Māori had no representation in the early years (1854-1868) of the New Zealand Parliament, even though they significantly outnumbered the European population at the beginning of this period. Because a European standard of individual land-ownership was a requirement for electors, Māori were not able to vote for members of Parliament where laws were passed that directly affected them and the early development of the nation. Ranginui Walker states that this "institutionalisation of racism at the inception of democracy in New Zealand was the root cause of the conflict between Māori and Pākehā in the North Island and the colonial spoliation which followed". The power imbalance created by the minority-ruled New Zealand Parliament had a profound effect on Māori culture because the very definitions of the new society were created without the input of this indigenous population. Assimilation of Māori was a manifest goal of settler governments. Māori customs, rules and values, known as ''tikanga,'' were not recognized because they didn't easily map onto European conceptions of law and were much more flexible depending on context. This complex Māori ideology was largely ignored or actively smothered by the incoming culture with the assumption that European values and traditions were superior. The effect of these overriding assumptions and misunderstandings greatly altered Māori culture as a new set of laws determined the acceptable norms of the new multi-cultural nation. The "judiciary simply denied that tikanga existed, the legislative suppressed aspects of tikanga, and together they altered the social structures of Māori in which tikanga existed, the overall effect being the social, economic, spiritual and political degradation of Māori society. To this day Māori society has still not recovered from this suppression of tikanga."

The Pākehā population doubled in the 1850s, surpassing the Māori population, so the cultural changes that had already begun now accelerated under the majority-rule government and the idea that Māori assimilation was more justified as European settlers poured into the country.

Land-ownership issues became some of the most transformative influences of the 19th century. In Māori culture collective ownership was the norm: Māori people hold a deep respect for, spiritual connection to, and responsibility for the land as ''tangata whenua'' (people of the land). As the government sought land for newly arriving immigrants, a series of laws like the Native Lands Acts 1862 and 1865 passed that radically changed the relationship Māori had with the land that they had existed on for over half a millennium. In 1870 Justice Minister Henry Sewell (in office 1870–1871) described the aims of the Native Land Court as "to bring the great bulk of the lands in the Northern Island ..within the reach of colonisation" and "the detribalisation of the Māori – to destroy, if it were possible, the principle of communism upon which their social system is based and which stands as a barrier in the way of all attempts to amalgamate the Māori race into our social and political system." By the end of the 19th century these goals were largely met - to the detriment of Māori culture.

Marginalisation and renaissance c.1900 AD to today

Māori continued to experience significant cultural change into the next century. In 1900 few Māori lived in European urban settlements. This changed very slowly. There were only 1,766 Māori in Auckland in 1935. In 1936 only 11.2% of Māori lived in urban areas. By 1945 this had risen to 19% and by 1971 to 68%. These changes reflect a significant alteration in the basis for income and employment – from working on rural land to working mainly in construction, freezing works or labouring. The dominant factors influencing this shift were the burgeoning Māori population and the inability of the land to support the increasing population.

During the 1930s and 1940s, MP Āpirana Ngata had passed land legislation to help Māori make better use of their remaining tribal land. Māori were handicapped in using and developing the land for modern agriculture as much Māori land was steep, remote, erosion-prone with high rainfall. European farmers who owned their land freehold mechanised to gain higher productivity, using bank loans for the new equipment. Māori were unable to gain loans as their land was generally tribal land and could not be used for securing individual loans. Leasing land to European farmers gave Māori a steady income but this was spread among many people. Māori farming was often based on a different system of values and not driven by European goals of efficiency and high productivity.

Apart from jobs, another attraction to urban migration were the monetary, recreational and lifestyle attractions of the city. Many Māori felt that success lay in the city rather than the country. King describes this as a "fantasy contagion-the realty did not live up to the myth but this did not stop the fantasy or the migration".
Other changes were a rising birth rate. In 1955, the Māori birth rate was nearly double the European rate at 43.6 compared to 26 per 1000. At the same time, Māori had fewer qualifications. In 1956 6.5% of Māori held professional, managerial or clerical jobs compared to 26.7% non-Māori. As a result, only 3.36% of Māori earned 700 pounds or more per annum compared to 18.6% for non-Māori. Māori were significantly impacted by changing economic circumstances such as the drop in wool prices. This made Māori more vulnerable to economic and social deprivation. King says that the lower Māori educational attainment lead to lower income jobs, which led to lower income, poor housing, and poor health, which in turn led to higher rates of crime.

These ingredients were potential causes of racial tension. They were seen by the wider community as "Māori problems". By the 1970s and 1980s, enough urbanised Māori had reached positions of influence to bring about a gradual but radical change to the thinking of governments. Their advocacy was underscored by an increasing willingness to use vigorous protest to push Mana Māori. Young urban radicals beat up a group of university students taking a comical view of Māori dance. Protestors occupied Bastion Point which was claimed as Māori land and resisted police arrest. In Raglan local Māori protesters reclaimed ownership of land used as an airstrip and golf course.

From the early 1970s a new generation of radicals arose demanding more Māori influence. Amongst the demands were for increased . The expression, an abstraction of the word for aristocracy, had been coined by Henry Williams in the Treaty of Waitangi to convey the idea of "chieftainship". However, the term was often used by Māori to express the idea of political rights for all Māori, not just the class, or the idea of Māori sovereignty or Māori independence.

Educated urban Māori advocated the teaching of Māori language and the inclusion of a Māori point of view in all aspects of education. Māori began to express their ideas in new political movements with Māori voters switching from supporting the Labour party to alternatives such as the Māori lead New Zealand First party in 1992. The introduction of MMP (Mixed Member Proportional) elections in 1996 had the effect of giving minority groups of any shades, more influence. The 1996 election produced 14 Māori MPs with 3 in the cabinet. Māori MP Winston Peters, was the deputy Prime minister.

This position set high expectations for positive results from the Treaty of Waitangi Tribunal which was set up to investigate Māori grievances against historical New Zealand governments in relation to the treaty. From the early 1990s a series of favourable outcomes from the treaty tribunal resulted in a large flow of capital in the form of land, primary resources and cash from the government to various Māori iwi (tribe or nation) and hapū (subtribe or clan). A key concept was the continued occupation of an area of land (Ahi kaa). The largest tribal deals approached $1 billion although many were far smaller. This gave and organisations a source of financial security they had not had previously. To 2013 the total paid by government exceeds $4 billion. These resulted in a more cohesive tribal organisation as all assets went to tribal or hapū organisations. In 2012 it was estimated that the total value of Māori-controlled assets was about $400 billion. , 70 settlements have reached the stage of being passed into legislation, with a further 45 settlements in various stages of negotiation.

Cultural concepts

Some of the fundamental cultural concepts of are present throughout Polynesia, but all have been altered by New Zealand's unique history and environment.

(power and prestige)

is a cultural concept of the Māori, meaning a sacred power or authority. Mana is sacred power bestowed by the gods on the ancestral lineage of chiefs, or . While the itself is a supernatural gift, the chief is free to waste or magnify it. Historian Judith Binney says that maintaining and increasing the of and and loyalty within the group is unquestionably at the heart of Māori cultural concepts. She says that Māori cultural history is confusing to the uninformed as it consists of narrative-myths that stretch far back in time. Also confusing is that chronological time is irrelevant or distorted to the Māori cultural story, so a person living in the present may narrate a story about their family or hapū that happened centuries ago; nonetheless, the narrator appears as a contemporary figure in the myth.

A key element of cultural leadership is to link the narrator to a well known historical figure with mana (prestige/authority power). This is why being able to recite the family history is so important. In Māori culture names of people and places are fluid. Individuals may change their name several times or have several different names that they use depending on the cultural situation. In the past, hapū changed names if they moved to another area where an alternative name was more positive. One of the main reasons for name fluidity was access to resources. As a hapū moved seasonally to utilise different resources its name changed to reflect an ancestor who had historical-cultural rights to that resource. Binney says that being connected to a powerful hapū with many well-known ancestors was important for protection and survival. As Māori communication was almost totally oral until well into the contact period, oral myth-narratives became more varied to match the needs of each hapū or whanau.

(genealogy)

is the origin and path of descent of a person, object or geographic area. A person's establishes their mana and tribal connections. It can be recited as an introduction ().

(balance and harmony)

is often associated with the word 'revenge'. However, in a broader sense, is meant as the preservation of balance and harmony within a civilisation. In the concept of , a fault must always be corrected and a kindness repaid. However, the means by which this is accomplished may vary greatly by case. In the context of a gift exchange, creates and preserves social connections and commitments. recovers balance in the event that social relations are interrupted.

, a form of , is a process of restorative justice typically between hapū and whānau groups, where acts of compensation for wrongdoing, usually physical items or resources, are given to the wronged party as a way to restore societal balance. differs from , as once the (ceremonial judicial process) has been completed and the compensation is made, no further acts or requirements are necessary, and the balance between the two parties has been restored.

Gift exchange was governed by three basic principles. First, giving had to have the appearance of being free and spontaneous, without stipulation of a return present. Second, a strict system of obligation was in force whereby the receiver was bound to not only reciprocate but to increase the value of the reciprocated gift. Third, the system demanded that further social obligation had now been established to continue the exchanges. Failure to respond meant loss of mana or influence. Where parties had travelled a long way to give a present it was expected that the return gift be immediate but often due to seasonal food supplies it was accepted that a return gift would be given at some later date when supplies allowed. While a gift conveyed an obligation to return the favour, so did an insult. The response might be a martial one. Historian Angela Ballara describes warfare as a "learned, culturally determined esponseto offences against the rules of Māori society."

(guardianship)

(from "guardian") means guardianship or protection and in modern usage relates mostly to the protection of the natural environment.

(forbidden and sacred)

is similar to . Together, they keep the harmony of things. sustains structure and social order. It can be seen as a legal or religious concept, that is centred on the idea of being "forbidden" and "sacred." When a person, place, or thing is considered to be , it is often distinguished as something in high value and importance, being set aside by the gods.

(tribal elders)

(or sometimes for women) are respected tribal elders of either gender in a Māori community who have been involved with their for a number of years. They are appointed by their people who believe the chosen elders have the capacity to teach and guide both current and future generations. It is against the rules of mana for anyone to self-proclaim their elder status, instead, the people acknowledge an elder's status. In the past, were believed to be "the reincarnation of a person who had acquired a supernatural or godly status after death, and who had become the protector of the family".

(gifts)

are gifts to the hosts, often of food or traditional items, though money is most commonly used today. Traditionally, the essence of is that it is voluntary and comes from the heart, so to specify the amount is contrary to its spirit. Increasingly, it is common for the to be a fixed sum per head that is communicated to the guests in private, so there is no embarrassment. Recipients rely on the donors' (empathy), (cherishing) and (spirit) to ensure that it is enough. Thanks for are accordingly warm.

(New Year)

, "Māori New Year", celebrates the first rising of the Pleiades in late May or early June. Traditionally the actual time for the celebration of varies, with some celebrating it immediately, others waiting until the rising of the next full moon. It is a day where they pay respect to the people they have lost but also gain over the last year that has passed. They celebrate the day and night with prayers, feasting, singing and music. After lapsing for many years it is now becoming more widely celebrated in a range of ways and over the period of a week or month anywhere from early June to late July.

Art, entertainment and media

Carving ()

or just is the Māori traditional art of carving in wood, stone or bone. Some surviving , or carvings, are over 500 years old. Wood carvings were used to decorate houses, fence-poles, containers, , tool handles, and other objects. Large-scale stone-face carvings were sometimes created. The most popular type of stone used in carving was (greenstone), a form of jade, but other kinds were also used, especially in the North Island, where was not widely available. Bone was used for delicate items such as fish-hooks and needles. Both stone and bone were used to create jewellery such as the . The introduction of metal tools by Europeans allowed more intricacy and delicacy.

Carving is a art.

The Māori Arts and Crafts Institute at Whakarewarewa in Rotorua is a stronghold of traditional carving skills. The institute was initiated by political leader Āpirana Ngata who wanted to rejuvenate Māori culture and saw the arts as a vital part of that. Ngata through this process endorsed certain patterns as being 'Māori art' which excluded some patterns.

Hone Taiapa was head of this school for some time. Since the Māori Renaissance there has been a resurgence of interest in , alongside other traditional Māori practices, with a much greater integration with mainstream contemporary art. The Māori Art Market (funded by the state-sponsored Toi Māori Aotearoa) is a significant venue for the promotion and sale of .

Notable carvers include
* Eramiha Neke Kapua (1867–1955)
* Piri Poutapu (1905–1975)
* Hori Pukehika (d. 1932)
* Raharuhi Rukupo (d. 1873)
* Hone Taiapa (1911–1979)
* Pine Taiapa (1901–1972)
* Inia Te Wiata (1915–1971)
* Tene Waitere (1853–1931)

Te Papa and Auckland Art Gallery have substantial holdings of , with Te Papa in particular having many digitised in their ''Collections online'' website.

Tattooing ()

is the traditional Māori art of tattooing the skin; a is an instance of the art. Prior to colonization, most high-ranking persons received as an important milestone between childhood and adulthood, and those who went without them were perceived to have lower social status. The art was a sacred activity accompanied by many rites and rituals. Men generally received on their faces, buttocks and thighs, women on their lips and chins. The facial form gives details of the wearer's lineage, status, and origin.

Historically, combined tattooing with scarification, in that the skin was carved with (chisels), not punctured. This left the skin with grooves rather than a smooth surface. were made from albatross bone and hafted to a handle. Pigments were made from the for the body colour, and (burnt timbers) for the blacker face colour. The soot from burnt kauri gum was also mixed with fat to make pigment. In the late 19th century were gradually replaced with needles, and became smooth tattoos instead of textured scars.

Since 1990 there has been a resurgence in the practice of for both men and women, as a sign of cultural identity and a reflection of the general revival of Māori language and culture. Most applied today is done using a tattoo machine, but there has also been a revival of the use of .

Painting

Charcoal drawings can be found on limestone rock shelters in the centre of the South Island, with over 500 sites stretching from Kaikoura to North Otago. The drawings are estimated to be between 500 and 800 years old, and portray animals, humans and legendary creatures, possibly stylised reptiles. Some of the birds pictured are extinct, including moa and Haast's eagle

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