Arts

Wood carving is perhaps the most outstanding traditional art of the Maori. War canoes big enough to hold 100 people were decorated with intricate carvings. Carvers also decorated large meeting houses. The parts of the building were carved to represent the parts of the body of a tribal ancestor. Like other Polynesian peoples, the Maori carved human figures called tikis as well.

The Maori also excelled in weaving. They wove flax into brightly patterned clothing fabrics, floor mats, and wall panels. One Maori art that made a particularly strong impression on early visitors was tattooing. Maori warriors had intricate patterns all over their faces.

In modern times the Maori have revived some of their centuries-old cultural and artistic traditions. Along with wood carving and weaving, traditional songs and dances are popular.

Food

The earliest Maori in New Zealand are sometimes called the Moa Hunters. This is because their preferred game animal was the moa, a huge flightless bird that is now extinct. The largest moas were larger than any bird now living on Earth. After the moas were gone, the Maori ate smaller birds. They also caught fish with a hook and line.

The Maori raised plants such as the kumara, a kind of sweet potato. The kumara and other Maori food plants were not native to New Zealand. Instead they were brought to the islands by Maori settlers from their warm tropical homeland. These plants had to be tended carefully to get them to grow in the cooler climate of New Zealand. After the Europeans brought in potatoes, grains, and other plants that were easier to raise, many Maori farmers switched to the new crops.

Language

The language of the Maori belongs to the Eastern Polynesian group of languages. Today fewer than half the Maori people understand the language, and even fewer speak it with ease. In an attempt to keep the language alive, the Maori have increased efforts to teach it to children. In1987 Maori became New Zealand's second official language. The other official language, English, is used by most of the Maori people.

Polynesian origins

According to tradition, the first Maori sailed to the islands now known as New Zealand from a tropical island called Hawaiki. Hawaiki is not Hawaii. Modern experts believe the Maori homeland is actually Tahiti. Maori tradition says that a “great fleet” of canoes arrived in New Zealand the 14th century. Modern scientists, however, believe that the Maori were already on the islands by AD 800.

The Maori eventually organized themselves into more than 40 tribes under the leadership of chiefs. Most of them settled on New Zealand's North Island, which is warmer than the South Island.

Contact with Europeans

The Maori first saw Europeans in 1642, when Dutch sea captain Abel Tasman reached the islands. Tasman lost several men in a clash with warriors and left quickly. More than a century later the British explorer James Cook received a friendlier greeting. The journals of his visit aroused interest in the area and its people.

New Zealand soon became a regular stop for European, American, and Australian traders and whalers. European settlers helped the Maori learn better ways of farming. Missionaries converted most of the islanders to Christianity in the first half of the 19th century. The Europeans also brought with them diseases that reduced the numbers of the Maori.

Conflict with the British

In 1840 Maori chiefs signed a treaty with the British government. They accepted British rule in exchange for the protection of Maori land rights. The land issue did not remain settled, however. As more Europeans came to New Zealand, the government wanted to buy more land than the Maori wanted to sell. Wars broke out in the 1840s and again in the 1860s. The Maori lost much of their land.

Modern times

In the 20th century many Maori moved to cities and towns. At the start of the 21st century about one New Zealander in ten was Maori, and the majority lived in urban areas. Marriage between Maori and people of European descent is increasingly common. Some Maori have adopted religions that are a mix of Christianity and traditional beliefs.

The Maori are now a prominent part of New Zealand society. Several seats in the New Zealand parliament are set aside for Maori. But many Maori remain poor. Maori activists work for their welfare. Among other things, they have tried to reclaim Maori land taken by the government in the 19th century.