Ngāti Rongomai is a

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

of New Zealand. They claim descent from Rangitihi's children Rakeiao, Kawatapuārangi and Apumoana, who came to reside on the southern shores of Lake Rotoiti. They are part of the greater

Te Arawa Te Arawa is a confederation of Māori people, Māori iwi and hapū (tribes and sub-tribes) of New Zealand who trace their ancestry to the ''Arawa (canoe), Arawa'' migration canoe (''waka''). The tribes are based in the Rotorua and Bay of Plent ...

confederation, descendants of the Māori people who arrived in New Zealand aboard the Arawa canoe. The Ngāti Rongomai Iwi Trust was established in 2007 to serve the interests of Ngāti Rongomai iwi, and maintains several

marae A ' (in Māori language, New Zealand Māori, Cook Islands Māori, Tahitian language, Tahitian), ' (in Tongan language, Tongan), ' (in Marquesan language, Marquesan) or ' (in Samoan language, Samoan) is a communal or sacred place that serves reli ...

in the Rotoiti community in New Zealand's Bay of Plenty region, including the Ruato Marae and Ngā Pūmanawa e Waru meeting house, and the Tapuaekura a Hatupatu Marae and meeting house. Additionally, they share the Te Waiiti Marae and Hinekura meeting house in Rotoiti and the Waiatuhi Marae and Kahumatamomoe meeting house in neighbouring

Mourea Mourea is a settlement in Rotorua Lakes within the Bay of Plenty Region of New Zealand's North Island. It is located on a thin strip of land between Lake Rotorua and Lake Rotoiti, on State Highway 33. Demographics Mourea is described by Sta ...

with fellow Te Arawa iwi. Te Wharekura o Ngāti Rongomai, a

Māori language Māori (; endonym: 'the Māori language', commonly shortened to ) is an Eastern Polynesian languages, Eastern Polynesian language and the language of the Māori people, the indigenous population of mainland New Zealand. The southernmost membe ...

immersion school for the Ngāti Rongomai community was opened in

Rotorua Rotorua () is a city in the Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand's North Island. It is sited on the southern shores of Lake Rotorua, from which it takes its name. It is the seat of the Rotorua Lakes District, a territorial authorities of New Zea ...

in 2009. In 2019, the kapa haka group Te Pikikōtuku o Ngāti Rongomai, formed from members of Ngāti Rongomai, placed second at

Te Matatini Te Matatini is a nationwide Māori performing arts festival and competition for kapa haka performers from all of New Zealand and Australia. The name was given by Professor Wharehuia Milroy, a composite of meaning "face" and denoting "many" � ...

References

{{Maori-stub

See also

References