Story: Ngāti Kahungunu

Page 7. The challenge of the new

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Te Aute and Hukarere

In 1857 the people of the Te Aute settlement granted 1,745 acres (700 hectares) as an endowment for a school to educate Māori children. Subsequently, Te Aute College and its sister school Hukarere Maori Girls’ College have produced some of the best-known Māori leaders. The Te Aute College Students’ Association, later the Young Maori Party, was founded by pupils and former pupils of Te Aute in 1897.

Newspapers, media and arts

Ngāti Kahungunu have produced a number of newspapers to inform their people and air their views and concerns. They include:

  • Aotearoa, published by John Thompson and Mariata Honepi in 1892
  • Huia Tangata Kotahi, the newspaper of the Kotahitanga movement at Waipatu, edited by Īhāia Hūtana from 1893 to 1895
  • Te Toa Takitini (the bravery of many), between 1921 and 1932
  • Te Reo O Aotearoa (the voice of Aotearoa), edited by the bishop of Aotearoa, F. A. Bennett, from 1932 to 1933
  • Kahungunu, with Huia Huata and Jo Spooner as proprietors, editors and managers, published in 1991
  • He Ngakau Hou, a Maraenui community paper edited by Bonnie Waka and later Paul King and Jimina King, established in 1999.

Radio Kahungunu, established in 1988, operates in Hawke’s Bay. Internationally renowned Ngāti Kahungunu artist Sandy Adsett heads a contemporary Māori arts school, Toimairangi, in Hastings. The Kahurangi Māori Dance Theatre, which has toured North America, is also based in Hastings.

Kahungunu organisation and marae

Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated is an organisation that oversees the development and social needs of all of Ngāti Kahungunu, as well as providing a body to address political issues. Its rohe (area) is divided into six taiwhenua, and there are also taurahere of Ngāti Kahungunu members living in urban areas such as Auckland and Wellington. Altogether, there are 86 Kahungunu marae within the traditional rohe of the tribe. A few of the marae have no building, and some have a building that is in a state of disrepair, but the marae status remains. However, most of the marae are still the centre of the various Ngāti Kahungunu communities, and numerous new and refurbished marae buildings are evidence of the continuing strong presence of Ngāti Kahungunu within their tribal region.

In 2016, Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairarapa Tāmaki Nui-ā-Rua, the section of the tribe in the southern region of Ngāti Kahungunu’s territory, was negotiating with the Crown for settlement of its historic treaty claims.

How to cite this page:

Mere Whaanga, 'Ngāti Kahungunu - The challenge of the new', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/ngati-kahungunu/page-7 (accessed 19 March 2024)

Story by Mere Whaanga, published 8 Feb 2005, updated 3 Mar 2017