Your search
Results 8 resources
-
This article discusses intergenerational transformations in personal identity for New Zealand's indigenous Māori and links these to macro-societal (political, economic and cultural) changes in New Zealand society. Data is drawn from the life stories of 35 Māori women aged 18 to 78. Women born prior to 1950 and raised in traditional Māori communities interpreted Māori identity as related to communal economics, resourcefulness and Māori spiritual beliefs. Those born after 1960, raised in urban (multi-cultural) communities struggled to form a positive sense of being Māori during their formative years and reported ‘dislocation’ from their Māori identities as adults. Those born after the 1970s expressed strong political views that reflected their early exposure to affirmative ideologies regarding Māori rights to equality. Marked differences in women's stories highlight the overarching influence of Māori identity politics at a collective level for personal interpretations of what it means to be Māori.
-
ABSTRACT Several writers have argued that New Zealand’s colonial history has thwarted optimal identity development among Māori (Awatere, 1984; Lawson Te-Aho, 1998a; 1998b). In recent decades the view that Māori identity may be restored via enculturation has gained widespread acceptance (Broughton, 1993; Edwards, 1999). Recent research indicates, however, that many Māori perceive their identities in ways that differ from the enculturated ideal (Borrell, 2005; Te Hoe Nuku Roa, 1996; 1999). Relatively little is known of the diverse interpretations that comprise ‘alternative’ Māori identity forms. This thesis aims to contribute to current understandings of Māori identity by exploring identity change across three generations of Māori women. For the purposes of the research, identity was treated as ‘held’ within personal life-stories and transformations were investigated by comparing the life-stories of 35 Māori women from different age groups. Attention was given to the impact of three socio-historical processes on identity: the mass migration of Māori from rural to urban locations after the 1950s, the drive towards Māori assimilation which underpinned Government policy towards Māori until the late 1960s, and the Māori political and cultural renaissance which gathered momentum in New Zealand from the 1970s. Data analyses found participants born prior to urbanisation evaluated their Māori identities positively and this seemed to reflect their isolation from Pākehā and exposure to competent Māori role models during their formative years. Participants aged between 35 and 49 expressed disharmony and tension around their Māori identities which many attributed to their early exposure to negative evaluations of Māori people. ‘Post-renaissance’ Māori, aged between 18 and 35, reported prizing their cultural distinctiveness from a young age and affirmed Māori political, cultural and social equality despite what they perceived as enduring Pākehā prejudice. This interpretation appeared to reflect their early exposure to educational experiences which imparted a sense of cultural pride and a national news media which publicised Māori political activism. Women’s life-stories reveal distinct intergenerational differences, a multiplicity of interpretations of Māori identity not widely articulated in literature, and the need to expand current paradigms of Māori identity to incorporate the individuality of group members.
-
Nineteenth-century British missionaries and the colonial government in New Zealand adopted a policy of assimilation of Maori into Pakeha (European) culture through actively discouraging Maori language, belief systems and culture. Central to the goal of assimilation was a Native School policy which in particular, emphasised the ‘Europeanising’ of young Maori. Church-run schools for Maori, which were subsidised by the state, aimed to return young Maori to their homes to model a Christian Pakeha lifestyle. This article argues that it was Maori girls, rather than Maori boys who were viewed as critical agents of change in the transformation of Maori society and that the colonial curriculum they were taught led to a political socialisation of generations of Maori women.
Explore
Topic
- wāhine māori
- activism (1)
- assimilation (1)
- christianity (1)
- colonisation (2)
- crown (1)
- crown policy (2)
- decolonisation (1)
- discrimination (1)
- economic inequality (1)
- education (1)
- identity (4)
- incarceration (1)
- inequality (1)
- intersectionality (1)
- mana wāhine (3)
- māori decision making (1)
- māori identity (1)
- periodicals (2)
- political change (1)
- prison (1)
- sexism (2)
- te reo māori (1)
- tino rangatiratanga (1)
- treaty settlements (1)
- urbanisation (1)
Resource type
Publication year
- Between 1900 and 1999 (5)
-
Between 2000 and 2026
(3)
- Between 2010 and 2019 (2)
-
Between 2020 and 2026
(1)
- 2023 (1)