Story: Take whenua – Māori land tenure

This whakapapa (genealogy) was given by Te Meihana Tākihi when claiming land at Pakōwhai in Hawke’s Bay in 1889. Te Meihana noted that he had rights to the land through ancestry, occupation, gift and conquest. He showed that he was descended from Hāwea, who had inherited rights through Tāraia. Whakapapa was important in the Native Land Court to illustrate take tupuna (ancestral rights).