The Treaty of Waitangi, sometimes referred to as Te Tiriti, is a document of central importance to the history of New Zealand, its constitution, and its national mythos. It has played a major role in the treatment of the Māori people in New Zealand by successive governments and the wider population, something that has been especially prominent from the late 20th century. The treaty document is an agreement, not a treaty as recognised in international law. It was first signed on 6 February 1840 by Captain William Hobson as consul for the British Crown and by Māori chiefs from the North Island of New Zealand. The treaty's quasi-legal status satisfies the demands of biculturalism in contemporary New Zealand society. In general terms, it is interpreted today as having established a partnership between equals in a way the Crown likely did not intend it to in 1840. Specifically, the treaty is seen, first, as entitling Māori to enjoyment of land and of natural resources and, if that right were ever breached, to restitution. Second, the treaty's quasi-legal status has clouded the question of whether Māori had ceded sovereignty to the Crown in 1840, and if so, whether such sovereignty remains intact.
Tino rangatiratanga is a Māori language term that translates literally to 'highest chieftainship' or 'unqualified chieftainship', but is also translated as "absolute sovereignty" or "self-determination," is central to Māori political aspirations. Many Māori advocate for tino rangatiratanga as a way to restore Māori control over their lands, resources, and cultural institutions. The very translation of tino rangatiratanga is important to New Zealand politics, as it is used in the Māori version of the Treaty of Waitangi to express "full exclusive and undisturbed possession" over Māori-owned lands and property, but different translations have drastically different implications for the relationship between the 1840 signatories: the British Crown and the Māori chiefs (rangatira).
Iwi are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, iwi roughly means 'people' or 'nation', and is often translated as "tribe", or "a confederation of tribes". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English.
Waitangi Day, the national day of New Zealand, marks the anniversary of the initial signing—on 6 February 1840—of the Treaty of Waitangi. The Treaty of Waitangi was an agreement towards British sovereignty by representatives of the Crown and indigenous Māori chiefs, and so is regarded by many as the founding document of the nation.
Kāwanatanga is a word in the Māori language of New Zealand, derived from the English word "governor". Kāwanatanga was first used in the Declaration of Independence of New Zealand, 1835. Kāwanatanga reappeared in 1840 in Article 1 of the Treaty of Waitangi, where the Māori text "te Kawanatanga katoa" corresponds to the English text "all the rights and powers of Sovereignty".
The flag of New Zealand, also known as the New Zealand Ensign, is based on the British maritime Blue Ensign – a blue field with the Union Jack in the canton or upper hoist corner – augmented or defaced with four red stars centred within four white stars, representing the Southern Cross constellation.
The Declaration of the Independence of New Zealand, sometimes referred to as He Whakaputanga, is a document signed by a number of Māori chiefs in 1835, proclaimed the sovereign independence of New Zealand prior to the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840.
Ngāti Whātua is a Māori iwi (tribe) of the lower Northland Peninsula of New Zealand's North Island. It comprises a confederation of four hapū (subtribes) interconnected both by ancestry and by association over time: Te Uri-o-Hau, Te Roroa, Te Taoū, Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara and Ngāti Whātua-o-Ōrākei. The five hapū can act together or separately as independent tribes.
In Māori culture, rangatira are tribal chiefs, the leaders of a hapū. Ideally, rangatira were people of great practical wisdom who held authority on behalf of the tribe and maintained boundaries between a tribe's land and that of other tribes. Changes to land-ownership laws in the 19th century, particularly the individualisation of land title, undermined the power of rangatira, as did the widespread loss of land under the Euro-settler-oriented government of the Colony of New Zealand from 1841 onwards. The concepts of rangatira and rangatiratanga (chieftainship), however, remain strong, and a return to rangatiratanga and the uplifting of Māori by the rangatiratanga system has been widely advocated for since the Māori renaissance began c. 1970. Moana Jackson, Ranginui Walker and Tipene O'Regan figure among the most notable of these advocates.
Claims and settlements under the Treaty of Waitangi have been a significant feature of New Zealand politics since the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 and the Waitangi Tribunal that was established by that act to hear claims. Successive governments have increasingly provided formal legal and political opportunity for Māori to seek redress for what are seen as breaches by the Crown of guarantees set out in the Treaty of Waitangi. While it has resulted in putting to rest a number of significant longstanding grievances, the process has been subject to criticisms including those who believe that the redress is insufficient to compensate for Māori losses. The settlements are typically seen as part of a broader Māori Renaissance.
The United Tribes of New Zealand was a confederation of Māori tribes based in the north of the North Island, existing legally from 1835 to 1840. It received diplomatic recognition from the United Kingdom, which shortly thereafter proclaimed the foundation of the Colony of New Zealand upon the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi.
The Māori protest movement is a broad indigenous rights movement in New Zealand. While there was a range of conflicts between Māori and European immigrants prior to the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, the signing provided one reason for protesting. Disagreements in the decades following the signing sometimes included war.
MokaKainga-mataa [Te Kaingamataa/Te Kaingamata/Te Kainga-mata/Te Kainga-mataa] (1790s–1860s) was a Māori rangatira (chief) of the Ngā Puhi iwi from Northland in New Zealand. He was distinguished in war and an intelligent participant in the Treaty of Waitangi process.
Margaret Shirley Mutu is a Ngāti Kahu leader, author and academic from Karikari, New Zealand and works at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. She is Māori and her iwi (tribes) are Ngāti Kahu, Te Rarawa and Ngāti Whātua.
The national colours of New Zealand orders include black, white or silver, and red ochre.
The principles of the Treaty of Waitangi is a set of principles derived from, and interpreting, the Treaty of Waitangi, which was signed in New Zealand in 1840. The phrase "principles of the Treaty of Waitangi" was first used in the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975, and the principles were codified in 1987. There is no final list and they are determined on a case-by-case basis. They include the three Ps: partnership, participation and protection of rangatiratanga.
Ana Hamu was a Māori woman of the Ngāpuhi iwi (tribe) in northern New Zealand. She was a woman of high rank. Hamu was closely related to Eruera Maihi Patuone.
Joseph Mooney is a New Zealand politician. In 2020 he was elected as a Member of Parliament in the House of Representatives for the National Party in the Southland electorate.
The flag now known as the flag of theUnited Tribes of New Zealand or Te Kara is a flag originally designed by Henry Williams to represent the New Zealand Church Missionary Society. It was adopted as a national flag by a group of rangatira in 1834 and is today more closely associated with the Māori people.
The Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill, commonly known as the Treaty Principles Bill, is a government bill promoted by David Seymour of the ACT New Zealand party. It aims to define the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi and put them to a nationwide referendum for confirmation. Prior to the 2023 New Zealand general election, ACT had campaigned against the Sixth Labour Government's co-governance policies and advocated a binding referendum on co-governance.
