Maori

Member of the Polynesian people of New Zealand. They number 435,000, about 15% of the total population, and around 89% live in the North Island. Maori civilization had particular strengths in warfare, cultivation, navigation, and wood- and stonework. Speechmaking and oral history, as well as woodcarving, were the main cultural repositories before the European introduction of writing, and Maori mythology and cosmology were highly developed. Their language, Maori, belongs to the eastern branch of the Austronesian family. The Maori Language Act 1987 recognized Maori as an official language of New Zealand.

The Maori colonized New Zealand, probably from Hawaii and Savaii, from about 850 AD, establishing a flourishing civilization throughout the country and driving the original inhabitants, the Morioris, to the South Island and Chatham Island. First contact with Europeans came at the end of the 18th century. Until about 1860, relations between Maori and European settlers were generally good, though based on mutual economic exploitation. Although earlier treaties had confirmed Maori sovereignty, the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840 and the subsequent influx of settlers from Britain effectively ended Maori political autonomy.

Traditionally, the Maoris were farmers, gatherers, and fishers. In the 19th century a great deal of Maori land was purchased or confiscated, while tribal authority was undermined by the activities of the Maori land courts. Most Maoris therefore became small farmers, usually with the poorest land, or agricultural labourers. Maori life was disrupted and their numbers declined steadily from about 100,000 near the beginning of the century to 40,000 in 1901. In the 20th century there has been a drift from the land, and more than 50% now live in urban areas, notably Auckland. There has also been a significant increase in Maori consciousness, demands for a comprehensive review of the Treaty of Waitangi, and Maori claims to some 70% of the country's land.

Maoris are specially represented in the New Zealand parliament by four members for separate Maori electoral districts. A Board of Maori Affairs was constituted in 1954, mainly to supervise the development of Maori land. Long-standing land grievances led to an agreement, in early 1998, between the Ngai Tahu, a Maori tribe, and the government. The settlement included a compensation package worth $A152 million, in the form of cash, assets, and land. Among the land returned to the Ngai Tahu was Mount Cook, New Zealand's highest mountain.