Voices from a Ngāti Tiipa oral history project

Tracing Opuatia: Repatriating and repurposing colonial land data

“…This work can sit alongside other hap u m atauranga and the Indigenous mapping of sites of significance. Indeed, the work undertaken for this paper sits within a wider project involving the mass repatriation of Ng ati Tiipa whakapapa and whenua data and its location within a hap ucontrolled digital repository for the benefit of current and future descendants (Kukutai, 2022;Kukutai et al, 2021). We hope that our methods can also be adapted and used by other hap u interested in developing their own digital and data infrastructure so as to reclaim control over data relating to their whenua, as supported by Article Two of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, the UNDRIP, and Indigenous data sovereignty.…”

“…Paoa and his tuakana Mahuta (Ng ati Mahuta) were grandsons of Pikiao, the eponymous ancestor of the Arawa iwi Ng ati Pikiao, and Rereiao, a descendant of the famous Tainui ancestor Whatihua (Jones & Biggs, 1995). The people who now affiliate as Ng ati Tiipa are mainly the descendants of Tiipa's daughter Kura and her husband Tapaue (for a more detailed description of Tiipa's whakapapa (genealogical) connections, see Kukutai et al, 2021). For several centuries Ng ati Tiipa had a significant presence in Te P uaha o Waikato-the area where the Waikato River meets the Tasman Sea-and northern Waikato generally, maintaining close relationships with their kindred hap u and iwi.…”

“…Located at the junction of Auckland and Waikato, Opuatia was a highly desirable target for government and settlers alike. Oral histories from Ng ati Tiipa kaum atua (elders) have described the predatory techniques and practices employed by P akeh a and local councils to acquire tracts of Opuatia during their lifetimes (Kukutai et al, 2021). These practices had long genealogies, with many reports in late 19th century newspapers highlighting the weight of collective local and national pressures exerted on Ng ati Tiipa to sell their land.…”

“…He opposed the Kīngitanga (Māori King movement) established in 1858 to unify iwi and hapū in order to halt land alienation amidst the rapid expansion of the settler population. Waata also held several paid positions in the colonial administration and was often described as ‘friendly’ or ‘loyal’ (for more on Waata's leadership and legacy, see Ewe, 2020; Kukutai et al, 2021). However, like the supporters of the Kīngitanga, Waata was opposed to land‐selling and had made this position clear in a rūnanga (council) proclamation published in 1857:

Ka puritia tenei whenua; ahakoa poka te tangata , ki te korero kia hokona ki te Pakeha , ekore e riro ; ka tau te whakaaro o nga runanga ki te pupuru i nga whenua timata mai i te puaha: a , Pukekawa atu ana .

This land will be retained .

…”