Ancient Māori culture
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Ancient Māori culture is the culture of the Māori of New Zealand, from their arrival from Eastern Polynesia until about 1800; by 1815 the setting up of mission stations serves as a demarcation point signalling increasing change in the cultural framework towards Christianity. After being first settled by Polynesian long-distance navigators sometime about AD 1280, a unique culture gradually developed. Diversified agriculture,hunting and fishing provided sustenance.
Polynesian Triangle
Māori cultural history is inextricably tied into a larger Polynesian phenomenon. Aotearoa (New Zealand) is the southwestern apex of the Polynesian Triangle, a region of the Pacific Ocean with three island groups at its corners: the Hawaiʻi islands, Rapa Nui (Easter Island), and Aotearoa (New Zealand). The many island cultures within the Polynesian Triangle share similar languages derived from a proto-Malayo-Polynesian language used in Southeast Asia 5,000 years ago. Polynesians also share cultural traditions, such as religion, social organization, myths, and material culture. Anthropologists believe that all Polynesians have descended from a South Pacific proto-culture created by an Austronesian (Malayo-Polynesian) people that had migrated from Southeast Asia.
The seven other main Polynesian cultures are:
- Māori (Aotearoa / New Zealand)
- Rapa Nui (now known as Easter Island)
- Marquesas
- Sāmoa
- Tahiti
- Tonga
- Cook Islands
Voyage to Aotearoa
Polynesian seafarers were skilled ocean navigators and astronomers. At a time when Western boats rarely went out of sight of land, Polynesians often traveled long distances. The early settlement history of New Zealand is still not completely resolved. The most current reliable evidence strongly indicates that initial settlement of New Zealand occurred around 1280 CE.
Cultural concepts
- Utu. This is one of the key concepts in traditional Māori beliefs. It has a range of meanings from payback,ransom, response and is sometimes used in a sense close to revenge, although the more accurate word for revenge is Uto. This was a major cultural obligation for a hapu(subtribe)to balance the Māori universal by paying back, often by violence or the threat of violence, for a slight on the mana of a chief in particular or a person of rank in general. The threatened hapu could, if the slight was not considered too serious, offer goods to the offended group. The traditional goods offered were preserved fish, eels or birds which had a high cultural value. In the event of a chief being injured or killed, the payback was always violence. Utu was not satisfied until a person of equal rank was killed and usually eaten or their head cut off and taken for display. Utu could be delayed for many years if a hapu did not consider itself in a strong military position. Quite often the son of a killed chief would seek payback many years later. The death of an unranked hapu member or slave did not call for utu.
- Mana. This means power, authority, prestige or authority. High-value goods such as a strong pa, carved waka taua (war canoe), plentiful food,ownership of greenstone weapons or fine cloaks reinforced the mana of a chief. The mana or reputation of a hapu was jealously guarded. Large feasts for visitors were one way of reinforcing mana. A series of victories in battle was the main way for a chief to increase his mana. In reality utu was a never-ending spiralling of disharmony and violence only partly broken by the introduction of Western culture and in particular Christianity in the 1830s and 1840s. Even today some Māori incorporate these concepts in their modern life.
- Take. This means just cause for utu. Māori who had been offended would normally discuss what was to be done to extract utu. Much of the talk was to establish if there was just cause for payback and to ensure the payback matched the level of offense. Take could be the stealing of food or other resources, or the swearing an oath against the subtribe or chief-this was considered a major offense. If the tapu of a chief was broken, this was always sufficient take for utu.
- Tapu. Sacred, untouchable or under spiritual or religious protection. A chief was tapu (taboo) and could not be associated with menial tasks like food preparation. Touching the head of a chief or stepping over his head was cause for swift and violent reaction.
Aspects of these ancient concepts are still practiced today,especially Mana.