Rachel Anne Buchanan (born 1968) is a New Zealand author, historian and curator. Based in Melbourne, she has written extensively on New Zealand Māori history, including notably her work ''Te Motunui Epa'' for which she was a joint recipient of the

Ernest Scott Prize Ernest Scott Prize The pre-eminent prize for "original published research that contributes to the history of Australia or New Zealand or to the history of colonisation in these countries." Awarded since 1943, the prize is named in honor of Ernes ...

in 2023.

Life and career

Buchanan was born in Whanganui in 1968, and is the daughter of paediatrician Leo Buchanan and his wife Mary English, the older sister of Bill English. She is part of the iwi (tribes) of Taranaki and Te Ātiawa. She graduated from Wellington Polytechnic with a diploma in journalism in 1985, and later earned her PhD in history from Monash University. Her PhD thesis about Parihaka was inspired by a 2000 exhibition at the City Gallery called "Parihaka: the Art of Passive Resistance". Buchanan is based in Melbourne. Her mentor is

Mahara Okeroa Mahara Okeroa (born 1946) is a former New Zealand politician of the New Zealand Labour Party. He represented the Te Tai Tonga Māori electorate as a Member of Parliament from 1999 to 2008. Early life and career Okeroa was born in Waitara, T ...

, also of the Taranaki iwi. Her historical writing includes ''The Parihaka Album: Lest We Forget'' (2009), ''Stop Press: The Last Days of Newspapers'' (2013) and ''Ko Taranaki te Maunga'' (2018). She has said she was inspired to write ''Ko Taranaki te Maunga'', a history of the events at Parihaka interwoven with her own family history, by her late father, who had been the "keeper of memory and whakapapa" for her family. From 2015 to 2018 she was the curator of the Germaine Greer archives at the University of Melbourne. Buchanan's illustrated historical work ''Te Motunui Epa'' was published in 2022 by

Bridget Williams Books Bridget Williams Books is a New Zealand book publisher, established in 1990 by Bridget Williams. Establishment Williams established the company in 1990 when the company she was working for, Allen & Unwin, was sold. She purchased the titles wh ...

. It tells the story of five carved

tōtara ''Podocarpus totara'' (; from the Maori-language ; the spelling "totara" is also common in English) is a species of podocarp tree endemic to New Zealand. It grows throughout the North Island and northeastern South Island in lowland, montane and ...

panels (

whakairo Toi whakairo (art carving) or just whakairo (carving) is a Māori traditional art of carving in wood, stone or bone. History Timber was formed into houses, fencepoles, pouwhenua, containers, taiaha, tool handles and waka (boats). Carving to ...

) that were hidden by Te Ātiawa during 19th century wars, sold overseas in the 1970s and returned to New Zealand in 2014. they are displayed at Puke Ariki. The work was described by ''Te Ao Māori News'' as "a compelling illustrated narrative that draws on government documents recently made public to convey a tale of art, ancestry, and power". It was shortlisted for the award for illustrated non-fiction at the 2023

Ockham New Zealand Book Awards The Ockham New Zealand Book Awards are literary awards presented annually in New Zealand. The awards began in 1996 as the merger of two literary awards events: the New Zealand Book Awards, which ran from 1976 to 1995, and the Goodman Fielder W ...

. In 2023 Buchanan was the joint winner of the

for ''Te Motunui Epa'', together with historian

Alan Atkinson Alan Atkinson (born 20 October 1951) is a former Australian rules footballer who played in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Atkinson was recruited by Collingwood from Hamilton, and made his debut in 1970. Despite playing 134 games for t ...

. The award is for distinguished historical writing that contributes to the history of New Zealand or Australia, and the judges said of Buchanan's work:

Selected works

*''The Parihaka Album: Lest We Forget'' (

Huia Publishers Huia Publishers (HUIA) is a book publishing company based in Wellington, New Zealand established in 1991. HUIA publish material in Māori language and English for adults and children. HUIA was founded by Robyn Rangihuia Bargh (CNZM) and her ...

, 2009) *''Stop Press: The Last Days of Newspapers'' (

Scribe A scribe is a person who serves as a professional copyist, especially one who made copies of manuscripts before the invention of automatic printing. The profession of the scribe, previously widespread across cultures, lost most of its promi ...

, 2013) *''Ko Taranaki te Maunga'' (

, 2018) *''Te Motunui Epa'' (Bridget Williams Books, 2022)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buchanan, Rachel Anne Living people 1968 births Taranaki (iwi) Te Āti Awa people People from Whanganui 21st-century New Zealand historians 21st-century New Zealand women writers 21st-century New Zealand non-fiction writers