Handout: The Māori


1. What do the Māori call New Zealand? What does this name mean?

2. When did the Māori migrate to New Zealand?

3. When was their first contact with European explorers?

4. What language do the Māori speak?

5. How many Māori tribes are there?

6. What is the name of the treaty that the Māori signed with the British (Queen Victoria). In what year?

7. Name three Māori authors.

8. What is “pounamu”?

9. What and when were the New Zealand land wars?

10. What larger cultural group do the Māori belong to? Name 2 other peoples that belong to this group?

11. What are whites or people of European heritage called in New Zealand?

12. Approximately what percentage of the population do Māori people comprise?

13. How are the Māori represented in government?