Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri
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Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri is a Māori iwi (tribe) of
New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
, who arrived on the '' Kurahaupō'' waka. In the 1600s the iwi settled northwestern
South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...
, becoming a major power in the region until the 1800s. In 1642, members of Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri made the first known contact between Europeans and Māori, when Dutch explorer
Abel Tasman Abel Janszoon Tasman (; 160310 October 1659) was a Dutch sea explorer, seafarer and exploration, explorer, best known for his voyages of 1642 and 1644 in the service of the Dutch East India Company (VOC). He was the first European to reach New ...
visited
Golden Bay / Mohua Golden Bay / Mohua is a large shallow bay in New Zealand's Tasman District, near the northern tip of the South Island. An arm of the Tasman Sea, the bay lies northwest of Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere and Cook Strait. It is protected in the nor ...
.


History

The members of the '' Kurahaupō'' waka initially settled in the
Bay of Plenty The Bay of Plenty () is a large bight (geography), bight along the northern coast of New Zealand's North Island. It stretches from the Coromandel Peninsula in the west to Cape Runaway in the east. Called ''Te Moana-a-Toitehuatahi'' (the Ocean ...
, and after several generations moved inland towards Taupō District and along the
Whanganui River The Whanganui River is a major river in the North Island of New Zealand. It is the country's third-longest river, and has special status owing to its importance to the region's Māori people. In March 2017 it became the world's second natur ...
. In the late 1500s, the iwi began settling the
Marlborough Sounds The Marlborough Sounds (Māori language, te reo Māori: ''Te Tauihu-o-te-Waka'') are an extensive network of ria, sea-drowned valleys at the northern end of the South Island of New Zealand. The Marlborough Sounds were created by a combination ...
, however later moved westwards. By the 1600s, the
rohe The Māori people of New Zealand use the word ' to describe the territory or boundaries of tribes (, although some divide their into several . Background In 1793, chief Tuki Te Terenui Whare Pirau who had been brought to Norfolk Island drew ...
of Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri had expanded to include most of the northwest of the South Island, spanning from Māwhera (
Greymouth Greymouth () (Māori language, Māori: ''Māwhera'') is the largest town in the West Coast, New Zealand, West Coast List of regions in New Zealand, region in the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the Grey District Council. The populat ...
) in the west to Whangarae ( Croisilles Harbour in the
Marlborough Sounds The Marlborough Sounds (Māori language, te reo Māori: ''Te Tauihu-o-te-Waka'') are an extensive network of ria, sea-drowned valleys at the northern end of the South Island of New Zealand. The Marlborough Sounds were created by a combination ...
), displacing Ngāti Wairangi ( Hauāuru Māori) to move south of Māwhera (Greymouth). Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri were the major force in the Tasman and Nelson regions for 200 years until the early 1810s, often coming into conflict with
Ngāi Tahu Ngāi Tahu, or Kāi Tahu, is the principal Māori people, Māori (tribe) of the South Island. Its (tribal area) is the largest in New Zealand, and extends from the White Bluffs / Te Parinui o Whiti (southeast of Blenheim, New Zealand, Blenhe ...
to the south, likely over rights to capture birds and eels.


1642: Meeting with Abel Tasman

The Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri people were the first known iwi to interact with Europeans, when Dutch explorer
Abel Tasman Abel Janszoon Tasman (; 160310 October 1659) was a Dutch sea explorer, seafarer and exploration, explorer, best known for his voyages of 1642 and 1644 in the service of the Dutch East India Company (VOC). He was the first European to reach New ...
on 13 December 1642. The ship ''Heemskerck'', on the 18th anchored north of what is now Abel Tasman National Park. The Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri sent two waka, and blasted ''pūkāea'' or ''pūtātara'' (trumpets) at the ship, which returned a trumpet sound and fired a cannon at the waka. The next morning, many waka came to attack the Dutch ships, and four Dutch sailors drowned after one smaller boat was rammed by a waka, while one member of the Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri war party was shot by the Dutch sailors. Tasman's crew raised their anchor and left the area, without ever landing ashore.


Decline

By the late 1700s, the Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri faced a new threat from the Ngāti Apa tribe, who launched frequent waka canoe attacks on the Nelson region from their home base in the Kapiti coast of the lower North Island. The Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri were simultaneously harassed by the Ngāti Kuia tribe that resided in the Marlborough region to the east. The reasons for these intrusions was for the securing of greenstone trail of which the various tribes needed to cross Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri-controlled land in order to reach the greenstone deposits of the West Coast of the South Island. The Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri planned a massive wave of canoe attacks on the Ngāti Apa home base at Kapiti coast with the intention to occupy Kapiti Island. However, unfavourable winds resulted in several canoes capsizing and the survivors were finished off by their enemies by the time they reached the shores of Kapiti Island. This left Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri vulnerable to reprisal attacks from all three neighbouring tribes and their controlled land was gradually wrested from them. In the late 18th century, Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri conflict with
Ngāi Tahu Ngāi Tahu, or Kāi Tahu, is the principal Māori people, Māori (tribe) of the South Island. Its (tribal area) is the largest in New Zealand, and extends from the White Bluffs / Te Parinui o Whiti (southeast of Blenheim, New Zealand, Blenhe ...
on the West Coast and Canterbury lasted for a period of 10–15 years, sparked by a series of events where Wereta Tainui, son of Tuhuru of Poutini Ngāi Tahu, abducted Kokore Ngati Tumatakokiri and took her as a wife, and in retaliation Ngāi Tahu chief Pakeke was killed at
Maruia Maruia is a locality in the West Coast, New Zealand, West Coast region of New Zealand. The Shenandoah Highway (State Highway 65) passes through it. Murchison, New Zealand, Murchison is 65 km north, the Lewis Pass is 39 km to the south- ...
. Ngāti Apa took advantage of this, and attacked Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri from the east of their rohe at Te Taitapu in
Golden Bay / Mohua Golden Bay / Mohua is a large shallow bay in New Zealand's Tasman District, near the northern tip of the South Island. An arm of the Tasman Sea, the bay lies northwest of Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere and Cook Strait. It is protected in the nor ...
. Ngāi Tahu and Ngāti Apa were joined by Ngāti Kuia and Rangitāne, culminating in a battle in the Paparoa Ranges circa 1810 where Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri were defeated, and Tuhuru a chief of Poutini Ngāi Tahu, killed Te Pau and Te Kokihi, the paramount chiefs of Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri, and their followers. The remaining people were enslaved, and their rohe was split between the tribes: Ngāi Tahu taking the lands on the West Coast, Ngāti Apa settling in the Nelson region, and Ngāti Kuia controlling the eastern Tasman Bay. When Te Rauparaha invaded the region in the 1820s and 1830s, people who had been taken by Ngāti Apa were made to live as slaves within different iwi,
Ngāti Toa Ngāti Toa, also called Ngāti Toarangatira or Ngāti Toa Rangatira, is a Māori people, Māori ''iwi'' (tribe) based in the southern North Island and the northern South Island of New Zealand. Ngāti Toa remains a small iwi with a population of ...
, Ngāti Koata, Ngāti Rārua,
Te Āti Awa Te Āti Awa or Te Ātiawa is a Māori iwi with traditional bases in the Taranaki and Wellington regions of New Zealand. Approximately 17,000 people registered their affiliation to Te Āti Awa in 2001, with about 10,000 in Taranaki, 2,000 in We ...
and
Ngāti Tama Ngāti Tama is a Māori people, Māori iwi, tribe of New Zealand. Their origins, according to oral tradition, date back to Tama Ariki, the chief navigator on the Tokomaru (canoe), Tokomaru waka (canoe), waka. Their historic region is in north Tar ...
. In 1846, a Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri
tohunga In the culture of the Māori people, Māori of New Zealand, a tohunga (tōhuka in Southern Māori dialect) is an expert practitioner of any skill or art, either religious or otherwise. Tohunga include expert priests, healers, navigators, carvers, ...
named Kehu (Hone Mokehakeha) assisted European explorers Charles Heaphy and Thomas Brunner in exploring the upper South Island. Kahu Peak in the Saint Arnaud Range is named after this tohunga. While Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri is not currently an autonomous iwi, some members of Ngāti Kuia and
Ngāi Tahu Ngāi Tahu, or Kāi Tahu, is the principal Māori people, Māori (tribe) of the South Island. Its (tribal area) is the largest in New Zealand, and extends from the White Bluffs / Te Parinui o Whiti (southeast of Blenheim, New Zealand, Blenhe ...
descend from Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri. In 2017, people who had Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri ancestry took place in the ceremonies celebrating 375 years since the contact between Tasman's crew and Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri.


References


External links


Ngāti Tūmatakōkiri history
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ngati Tumatakokiri Iwi and hapū Te Tau Ihu Māori