Kōrero: Nōnahea a Aotearoa nōhia tuatahitia ai?

Whārangi 3. Te tikanga radiocarbon dating

Ngā whakaahua me ngā rauemi katoa o tēnei kōrero

I te tekau tau atu i 1940 ka hua tētahi momo tātaritanga mātai whai para tangata hōu, arā, ko radiocarbon dating. Mā tēnei tikanga ka taea te ine i te pakeke o tētahi mea paraumu (organic) pēnei i te rākau, anga, kōiwi rānei. Kei ngā kaiao katoa o te ao tētahi momo matūwaro (carbon) kīia ai ko carbon 14. Kei te mōhiotia e ngā tohunga pūtaiao he aha te roa, kātahi ka tīmata te pirau haere o tēnei momo matūwaro. Nā reira, mā te ine i te korahi o te carbon 14 kei roto i tētahi mea i te ora i mua, ka taea te whakatau he aha te pakeke o taua mea. Ahakoa taea ai e tēnei tikanga te whakatau i te pakeketanga whānui o tētahi mea, kāore e taea e ia te āta tohu ki te pakeke ake o tētahi mea.

I waenganui i ngā tekau tau o 1960 me 1980, ko te wā 1000–1100 AD te wā tōmua rawa i whakaritea e tēnei tikanga aromātai. I te tekau tau atu i 1990, i te whanaketanga o ēnei mātauranga pūtaiao, ka arotakengia anōtia te wā tae tuatahi ai te tangata ki Aotearoa. Ko tētahi mea i kitea, kāore he take o ngā arotakenga radio carbon mai i ngā maramara ngārehu: tērā pea ka hia tau kē te pakeke o te rākau kātahi anō ka wera, ka pōhēhē he tawhito ake tētahi wāhi i kitea aua taunakitanga. Nā reira, he tūturu ake ngā taunakitanga nō muri i te tau 1250, ahakoa te whakapae a ētahi mātai whaipara tangata, kei te tika tonu ngā taunakitanga mō te wā 1180–1250 AD.

Tātaritanga o ngā pungarehu puia

He rerekē te pungarehu ka rukea e te puia – he karaehe puia (volcanic glass), maramara toka, he maramara manawa whenua, aha atu. Nā reira ka taea te ine he aha te tau o te hū. Tērā pea nā ngā hū o Taupō (mōhiotia ia ko pungarehu Taupō) o te tau 232 (± 15 tau) me Tarawera (mōhiotia ai ko pungarehu Kaharoa) o te tau 1314 (± 12 tau) i taupoki ētahi kāinga. I rāwhiti o Te Ika-a-Māui kua kitea ētahi nohoanga tawhito ki runga tata ake i te paparanga o te pungarehu Kaharoa. Nā reira nō muri kē tēnei nohoanga i taua hū. Heoi, kāore anō kia kitea ētahi nohoanga tāngata ki raro i te paparanga o Taupō, o Kaharoa rānei.

Ngā moutere pūreirei

Taketake mai ana ētahi ariā mō te taunga o te noho a te tangata ki Aotearoa i te taiao. Ko Poronihia ki te rāwhiti ki runga, ko Aotearoa kei raro iho, ka mutu, hā rerekē te āhua o ngā rangi ki reira. Nā ngā hau o tēnei takiwā, he uaua te hoe tika atu i Poronihia i te rāwhiti ki Aotearoa, atu i Aotearoa ki Poronihia i te rāwhiti rānei. Mā te aromātai i ngā taunakitanga i ngā moutere i peka rātou i tā rātou haerenga mai ki Aotearoa, ka taea te tohu ki tētahi wā tērā i tae te tangata ki Aotearoa.

Mā ngā niho e whakaatu

Ko te tāhuna o Te Wairau kei Marlborough tētahi o ngā wāhi whaipara tangata tawhito rawa atu o Aotearoa. E ai ki ngā kairangahau a Tom Higham, Atholl Anderson me Chris Jacomb, tērā pea ko ētahi o ngā tāngata i tanumia ki reira i haere mai i Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa. Ka inea e rātou te wā mā te tikanga radiocarbon dating. Ka taea pea e ngā tohungatanga pūtaiao te hura i ngā kōrero mō tēnei. He rerekē ngā kai o te tangata mai i Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa tērā i te tangata i ahu mai i Te Wairau. Mā te tātari i ō rātou niho me ō rātou kōiwi, ka taea e ngā kaimātai pūtaiao te tohu he aha aua tāngata, nō hea hoki rātou. I ngā rā tata ki mua, nā ētahi rangahautanga i Ūropi ki ōna niho i tohu ki tētahi tangata i tanumia i Ingarangi i te tau 2300 BC, i whānau kē mai ki te pae maunga o ngā Alps i Ūropi.

Kei waenganui pū ngā moutere o Kermadec me Norfolk i a Poronihia ki te rāwhiti me Aotearoa. Kāore e kore i peka ngā waka ki ēnei moutere i a rātou ka haere atu, ka hoki mai rānei i Aotearoa. Kua kitea te matā tūhua (obsidian) mai i Aotearoa ki ngā moutere o Kermadec. Kāore e kore i heria ki reira e ngā kaihōpara e hoki ana ki Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa. Tērā pea ka taea e ngā taunakitanga radiocarbon te tautoko i te ariā e mea ana i kitea ngātahitia a Aotearoa, ngā Kermadec me Norfolk.

Te noho ki Wharekauri

E ai ki ngā taunakitanga radiocarbon dating, nō te takiwā o te tau 1500 nōhia ai a Wharekauri. Heoi kāore anō kia kitea etahi nohoanga tōmua rawa. Ka whai tēnei i te tikanga tūhura i Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa: i te tuatahi ko ngā Kermadec, nō muri ko Aotearoa (tae rā anō pea ki te moutere o Enderby, i ngā Auckland Islands tata ki te pito tonga o te ao), kātahi anō a Wharekauri.

Me pēnei te tohu i te whārangi:

Geoff Irwin and Carl Walrond, 'Nōnahea a Aotearoa nōhia tuatahitia ai? - Te tikanga radiocarbon dating', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/mi/nonahea-a-aotearoa-nohia-tuatahitia-ai/page-3 (accessed 19 March 2024)

He kōrero nā Geoff Irwin and Carl Walrond, i tāngia i te 8 Feb 2005, updated 1 May 2016