Cementing Waitangi Day In 1973, legislation was passed to recognise February 6 as a public holiday to commemorate the signing of te Tiriti. However, it also renamed the date as New Zealand Day, with the intention of creating a sense of nationhood. There was criticism that the name change diminished te Tiriti.
The Waitangi Day Act 1960 declared 6 February to be Waitangi Day; a national day of thanksgiving in commemoration of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. Waitangi Day, a public holiday from 1974, briefly became New Zealand Day in the 1970s. Increasingly, it became a focus for Māori protest activities.
Aotearoa (Māori: [aɔˈtɛaɾɔa]) is the contemporary Māori-language name for New Zealand. The name was originally used by Māori in reference to only the North Island, the name of the whole country being Aotearoa me Te Waipounamu ("North Island and South Island").
For Aotearoa, is it widely assumed, is the original 'indigenous name' for New Zealand. It is certainly the 'modern' name favoured by many Māori and others.
However in 1645, Dutch cartographers changed the name to Nova Zeelandia in Latin, from Nieuw Zeeland, after the Dutch province of Zeeland.
Cementing Waitangi Day
In 1973, legislation was passed to recognise February 6 as a public holiday to commemorate the signing of te Tiriti. However, it also renamed the date as New Zealand Day, with the intention of creating a sense of nationhood.
Waitangi Day (Māori: Te Rā o Waitangi), the national day of New Zealand, marks the anniversary of the initial signing—on 6 February 1840—of the Treaty of Waitangi.
The government has also established the Commemorating Waitangi Day Fund to support a range of events, such as hāngi and kapa haka performances and community tree planting. Māori communities also mark the day with discussions around the Treaty.
A special hui (gathering) was held at Te Tii Marae and Waitangi in February 1934 to celebrate the formal handing over of the Bledisloe's gift of land, with around 10,000 Māori from across New Zealand attending to honour and celebrate the gift. This became the first official celebration of Waitangi Day.
"Waitangi" is a Māori-language name meaning "noisy waters" or "weeping waters", probably referring to the Haruru Falls on the Waitangi River. The Treaty of Waitangi was first signed at Waitangi on 6 February 1840.
Colonists believed the Treaty of Waitangi was fair because it offered Māori the rights of British citizens. The signing of the Treaty made it easier for settlers to acquire land.
Waitangi Day marks the anniversary of the initial signing – on 6 February 1840 – of the Treaty of Waitangi, which is regarded as the founding document of the nation. The first Waitangi Day was not celebrated until 1934, and it was made a national public holiday in 1974.
About 40 chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi on 6 February 1840. By the end of the year, about 500 other Māori, including 13 women, had put their names or moko to the document; all but 39 signed the Māori text.
Make some kebabs of kiwi and feijoa fruit. Ask your chef to serve roast lamb for lunch. Serve New Zealand ice cream for dessert. Make roasted Kumara salad (recipe provided) or prepare a Pavlova with a group of residents.
There were two versions of the Treaty. One was in Māori, the other was written in English. William Hobson signed for Queen Victoria, the Queen of England. He signed the English and Māori versions.
Governments breached (broke the terms of the Treaty) almost from the time it was signed. Iwi lost many resources through: The government buying Māori land for low prices, leaving Māori with inadequate land reserves. Confiscation of land, especially following the New Zealand Wars.
Mārama signed the Treaty of Waitangi on 28 April 1840 at Kaitāia. As Miria Simpson noted, Mārama is usually a woman's name. This would make her one of an important group of Māori women who signed the Treaty of Waitangi.
First to the north
Many there were suspicious of Hobson and his Treaty. Some were concerned about how the Treaty would affect trade and commerce with settlers. Others, like Te Taonui, had visited Sydney and seen how badly the Aborigines fared from British treatment.
The Treaty of Waitangi has two texts. The Māori version is not an exact translation of the English. There has been much debate over the differences – how they came to be and what they mean. Some people argue that there are two treaties: te Tiriti, the Māori version, and the Treaty, the English version.
The Treaty of Waitangi is New Zealand's founding document. It takes its name from the place in the Bay of Islands where it was first signed, on 6 February 1840.
The Treaty of Waitangi is the founding document of our country. Maori agreed: to let other people live in their country; and. to let the British make rules about behaviour and see that everyone obeys them.
The Treaty of Waitangi is New Zealand's founding document. The principles of the Treaty are referred to in several Acts of Parliament. It is an important part of the New Zealand education system and how New Zealanders work. Applying the Treaty influences life in New Zealand in many ways.
The 1860s saw confiscations of huge areas by the government and large areas of land began to be lost through the effect of the Native Land Court. The period between 1890 and 1920 saw a boom in government land purchases, despite Māori protests. By 1937, very little land was left in Māori ownership.
Despite improvements, the Maori continue to experience disproportionately high rates of poverty, incarceration, illness, sexual assault, domestic abuse, and suicide.