3. My Journey into Iwi Histories

My journey into iwi histories and traditions began at a whānau hui in 1984. My father gave me my very first piece of whakapapa showing a single line of genealogical 'descent' commencing with Hoturoa (the commander of Tainui waka) leading all the way 'down' to my grandfather, Haunui Tukumana Royal. It was a powerful moment as I quickly connected myself into the whakapapa and I understood that I too belong to this history, this tradition and legacy. I carried that whakapapa with me for a long time and added to it, making connections with a host of other whānau and hapū that we were closely related to. To this day, whakapapa remains one of my passions.

Formal Research Roles

Later, I was able to pursue my interest in iwi histories and traditions through a number of formal research roles. This included working in 1986 as a researcher for the then Royal Commission on Social Policy under Prof Mason Durie, Mānuka Henare and Edward Douglas. I then worked for Shane Jones at the Ministry for the Environment in the Māori Secretariat (named by Huirangi Waikerepuru of Taranaki, 'Maruwhenua'). We worked on the Resource Management Law Reform which lead to the passing of the Resource Management Act 1991. The Law Reform process required us to travel throughout the country visiting Māori communities to gather information concerning the histories, experiences and perspectives of these communities. Both the Royal Commission on Social Policy and the Ministry for the Environment offered me a tremendously important introduction to the nature of our iwi/Māori communities, their histories and experiences. 

My third research role was at the Alexander Turnbull Library where I worked alongside Wharehuia Hemara, Carol O'Biso and Mīria Simpson in the development of an exhibition concerning the Treaty of Waitangi. The exhibition was part of the Library's contribution to the 1990 Sesquicentennial Commemoration of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. Working in the Turnbull Library was a gift as I was free to explore original Māori language manuscripts - whakapapa books, letters, journals and so much more. To this day, I am fascinated by Māori language manuscript materials held in public collections and I believe that they are most under-utilised, most under valued 'reservoirs of knowledge' in the country.

Following my time at the Turnbull, I was fortunate to be appointed as Fellow in Māori History at the then Historical Branch, Department of Internal Affairs. Here I learnt a great deal from historians Jock Phillips and Malcolm McKinnon - wonderful teachers, mentors and friends. It was during this time too (1992), that I published my first book entitled Te Haurapa: An Introduction to Researching Tribal Histories and Traditions (Bridget Williams Books 1992). I also completed a masterate study on waiata of Ngāti Toarangatira and Ngāti Raukawa, which became another book entitled Kāi au i konei: He Kohikohinga i ngā Waiata a Ngāti Toarangatira, a Ngāti Raukawa (Huia 1994). In the period 1990-1994, I also worked on a host of history related projects such as the Bateman New Zealand Historical Atlas, the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography and the Ngāti Raukawa claim submitted to the Waitangi Tribunal. In 1998, I also completed doctoral studies concerning the whare tapere - iwi based 'houses' of storytelling, dance, music, puppetry and other entertainments. This involved a significant amount of research concerning iwi histories and traditions. 

Kaumātua Mentoring and Being an Iwi Member

Throughout this entire period - from approximately 1985-1995 - I formed my first and important relationships with kaumātua (predominantly my own) who taught me aspects of iwi histories and traditions. Some of those kaumātua - such as Tūkawekai Kereama of Ngāti Raukawa - possessed an extraordinary amount of iwi knowledge some of which had never been recorded. Aspects of the old oral tradition and discipline were still alive within kaumātua such as Tūkawekai.

These kaumātua taught me the difference between being a student of iwi histories and traditions and being truly responsible for them. They challenged me to be a repository or vessel for them (he pātaka iringa kōrero) and make use of them when time was right to do so. They felt a sense of moral obligation to see these traditions perpetuated in succeeding generations and they took tikanga very seriously. As they had entrusted certain things to me, they urged me to take these things seriously too. Ngārongo Iwikātea Nicholson of Ngāti Raukawa challenged me particularly with the following expression:

Kei pātai mai te Atua, i pēwheatia e koe ngā taonga i hoatungia e ahau ki a koe?
Lest God should ask, what did you do with the treasures I gave you?

(Iwikātea was challenged with this same expression by his teacher, Te Ōuenuku Rene of Ngāti Toarangatira and Ngāti Raukawa.) 

Other kaumātua who became my mentors included Tūkawekai's sister, Rangiamohia Parata, Pāteriki Te Rei of Ngāti Toarangatira, and Kerei Mangōnui Roera of Ngāti Raukawa. I worked with Dr Mīria Simpson of Ngāti Awa during the early 1990s and I learnt a great deal from her regarding Māori language scholarship. Finally, Rev Māori Marsden of Te Tai Tokerau (my grandmother's brother) was tremendously important to teaching me some of the deeper aspects of our culture, our Māoritanga. 

My Journey into Hauraki Iwi Histories and Traditions

Huhurere Tukukino
of Ngāti Tamaterā

My formal introduction to Hauraki iwi histories and traditions commenced in about 1992 or 1993 when I approached my granduncle, Huhurere Tukukino of Ngāti Tamaterā regarding my whānau connections in Hauraki. I was raised in Wellington and to that point had spent a great deal of time understanding my Ngāti Raukawa background. However, I always knew that my most immediate whānau connections are in Hauraki - particularly Ngāti Tamaterā and Ngāti Whanaunga. As we belong to the Tukukino whānau of Ngāti Tamaterā, I sought Uncle Huhurere's advice. He suggested I speak with Taimoana Tūroa, a nephew of Uncle Shu (as we knew him) and a Ngāti Tamaterā historian. I met Uncle Taimoana in 1994 and little did I know that he had been writing a book on Hauraki iwi histories and traditions told through placenames. He was a surveyor and possessed a prodigious memory for whakapapa and kōrero. So when I met him, he gave me his manuscript of Hauraki iwi histories and traditions and asked me to help him prepare his manuscript for publication. At that stage, I had published two books on iwi histories and traditions and he was looking for someone to help him bring his book to fruition. I was delighted and honoured by his request and we spent the next 3-4 years working on his manuscript and getting it ready for publication. Unfortunately, Uncle Tai passed away in 1998 and did not live to see his book published in its final form. It was published by Reed Books in 2000 as Te Takoto o te whenua o Hauraki, Hauraki Landmarks. I am indebted to Uncle Tai and Uncle Huhurere for giving me such a rich and powerful introduction to Hauraki iwi histories and traditions. 

My Hauraki Iwi History Projects

After completing Uncle Tai’s book, I went on to pursue a number of projects to increase my understanding of Hauraki whakapapa, histories and traditions. A particularly important question that I wished to address concerned the circumstances and reasons by which my grandfather, Haunui Tukumana Royal, became the whāngai-adopted child of the late Ngāti Whanaunga scholar and rangatira, Tukumana Te Taniwha. My grandfather bore Tukumana’s name and inherited Tukumana’s interests (along with his whāngai sister Ira Tukumana/Ada Renata) in the family farm at Waimangō, Wharekawa, western Hauraki. Unfortunately, my family know very little about how our grandfather came into Tukumana’s care and inheritance. However, through research, I have been able to piece together an understanding of these circumstances and they are significant indeed.  Researching the relationship between Haunui and Tukumana has taken me in many directions within the histories and traditions of my Hauraki people. This includes such things as the relationship between Ngāti Maru and Ngāti Whanaunga (particularly as this relates to Ngāti Pākira, Ngāti Te Aute, Ngāti Hauāuru and Ngāti Puku), the nature of mōkai, Hauraki conflicts with iwi in other districts and much more. All this history contributes to the context and circumstances by which my grandfather came to be a whāngai of Tukumana Te Taniwha.

In researching the histories and traditions of my Hauraki iwi (and sharing my discoveries and understandings) I hope that I am fulfilling the wishes of my immediate elders - such as Huhurere Tukukino and Taimoana Tūroa - with whom I spent a significant amount of time. I also wish to acknowledge and reciprocate the support and encouragement of Kemara Tukukino and Rikiriki Rākena, both of Ngāti Tamaterā, and Toko Renata Te Taniwha of Ngāti Whanaunga (Manaia, Coromandel).

Finally, as I learn more about my own whakapapa, more and more I feel I am walking in the footsteps of my great-grandfathers, Tukumana Te Taniwha of Ngāti Whanaunga and Tūroa Kiniwe Royal of Ngāti Tamaterā, both of whom were whakapapa exponents. Among others, Tukumana was taught by his father Reihana Poto who one newspaper described as Hoani Nahe’s amanuensis (a literary or artistic assistant, in particular one who takes dictation or copies manuscripts). Tūroa too was a whakapapa expert who was taught by his maternal grandfather, Hunia Te Weu Waara Tukukino, son of Tukukino Te Ahiātaewa of Ngāti Tamaterā. Tūroa wrote a number of important manuscripts and whakapapa books.

4. Sources of Hauraki Iwi Histories and Traditions 

How to cite this article

How to cite this article: "My Journey into Iwi Histories', an article by Te Ahukaramū Charles Royal, published to the Hauraki Iwi History Blog (www.haurakiiwihistory.blogspot.co.nz),  3 March 2021.

Please note that the author reserves the right to alter, change, edit and delete any content in this article without notice and at any time.

(c) C Royal 2021

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