The shape of things in Aotearoa

Tu Tangata, Issue 25, 1 August 1985, Page 50

The shape of things in Aotearoa

By Bill Secker

n times gone by the Maori knew more of the geography of their country than present day New Zealanders, living in an entirely different world, appreciate.

It is very much a part of human nature, that when society is in a state of change due to technological changes taking place, no generation fully appreciates what their predecessors knew and in fact achieved.

This is very much the case concerning the geographical knowledge possessed by the Maori in olden times, considering the large landmass presented by New Zealand, and the difficulties of travel from both physical barriers and political considerations.

Legend has it that the island, which by the decree of some unimaginative administrator has been given the prosaic title of North Island, was originally fished out of the sea by the illustrious demigod Maui. Sir Peter Buck in his authoritive work “The coming of the Maori’’ sums this legend up by stating that it is a figurative and embellished way of describing the discovery of a new whenua (land). In this light the fishing up of Te Ika a Maui sometime in the eighth and ninth centuries A.D. is no more colourful than some of the old testament’s well known stories which also record events at the dawn of history. Legends of the fishing feat abound, but one recalls that it took Maui and his brothers three months to land the fish.

The time in which it took Maui to haul in his catch when viewed in this more factual age can well be taken for the time spent in circumnavigating the North Island by water. The Ngapuhi story of the catching recalls that the task was achieved amidst much foaming of the water, which in the days of an unwritten language, records the heavy seas encountered during the exploration of Maui’s newly found whenua which at one time was also known as Aotea.

This foaming and commotion of the waters would be in reference to the seas that on the west coast beat in from the Tasman and the heavy swells that roll across the Pacific and pound our eastern shores. Finally not to be left out of the ancient saga are the fierce tidal rips encountered in Cook Strait (Raukawa) which at a later date were to cause Kupe the utmost concern when the Mata Houra was hauled through the Strait at the rate of knots by a gigantic octopus. To give credence to the saga, Maui’s

catch was named as none other than a gigantic whai (skate) or stingray the whai repo. Far from stretching the imagination this association of the North Island with a skate or ray added substance to the legend, for this fish with some under-

standable licence agreed with the general shape of Te Ika a Maui. To prove this point to succeeding generations was the evidence of the eyes of the fish which could be identified as the prominent geographical features of Wellington Harbour (Whanganui a

Tara) and Lake Wairarapa. The fins of the marine denizen were preserved for all time as the prominent landmarks which terminated in Cape Egmont and East Cape while the North Auckland Peninsular was the tail along which the souls of the departed wended their way to Hawaiki.

Other traditions about the discovery state that the North Island was first sighted by Maui when he climbed a hill in the vicinity of Kaikoura. This legend however appears to have been tidied up somewhat by its European recorder as it lacks the colourful description of the hauling in of the stingray. It can however lend weight to the hypothesis that the eastern coast of the northern South Island was the locality in which the Polynesians made their first landfall.

Irrespective of whether the first people to settle New Zealand were hapless castaways or purposeful voyagers, which are views nowadays held by those who have made a scientific study of the peopling of our islands in prehistoric times, the fact remains that the visitors from Eastern Polynesia found their new land a vastly different place to the one they came from.

The cooler climate which was warmer than its present counterpart, the seemingly never ending coastline, large rivers and mountains which often were perpetually covered with snow, made for a strange but not altogether alien environment. For reminding the folk of home were elements of our flora on which were bestowed Eastern Polynesian names. Recalling these times are such plant names as kawakawa, poroporo and the prefix ti in the Maori names for the different species of cabbage tree.

From the archeological record, brief as it is, is the story that within the space of two centuries having severed ties with Eastern Polynesia and come to grips with a new environment, an indigenous New Zealand culture had emerged which was still in the process of development at the time of European contact. Furthermore the archeological record shows that the settlements were well spread throughout the archipelago that is now New Zealand.

In developing the modified New Zealand pattern of the Eastern Polynesian culture, the resources of the country were discovered and wherever possible, utilised. Fowling parties heading into the hinterland and ranges whether by canoe or foot would expand the geographical knowledge of the inhabitants of Aotearoa. To this searching for birds and other forest foods needs to be added the quest for locating outcrops of rocks which when shaped out and ground would supply the tools of trade. Fishing and other food gathering activities along the coastline would add further detail to the comprehensive geographical knowledge of the southern most corner of Polynesia.

- -- SI T /!• f- W- r .t: - -- Unlike the Rev Samuel Marsden on the Church Missionary Society who was not interested in things Maori because in his eyes they were tainted with paganism, Governor King showed great interest in matters relating to New Zealand. Immediately after Tukitahua had drawn his map of Te Ika a Maui, King had it recorded while at the same time he sent for a copy of Cook's chart so that he could make comparisons. On comparing the two maps he at once could see the similarity and gain a further insight into a race who had already impressed other european observors with their intelligence in these early days of contact j with the western world. Today Cook's map looks slightly out of alignment which is not surprising considering he had trouble in fixing longitude and keeping his station on a stern coastline. His problems were altogether of a different nature however as he was able to record his cartography and make corrections when errors were shown up. King arranged passage back to New Zealand for Tukitahua and in fact accompanied him on the homeward voyage to Doubtless Bay. Although King was impressed by the demeanor of the tohunga and his personality, Tukitahua for his part was not altogether impressed with what he had seen in his travels. This is not surprising considering the types he would have seen in the New South Wales and Norfolk Island convict settlements. By pointing to a cabbage that had been cut from a Norfolk Island garden five days before, Tukitahua did bring home to his kinsmen that their were other lands beyond the horizon and it was not long before Maori began to travel as members of ships crews or as invited companions of visitors to these shores.

Just how extensive was the geographic knowledge posessed by the Maori in prehistoric times can be judged by the detail included in what has become known as Tukitahua's map.

Tukitahua was a tohunga of the Ngati Aupouri tribe who had been kidnapped from Doubtless Bay by the commander of HMS Dromedary with the intention of imparting the secrets of how to weave flax to the convicts of Norfolk Island. To his credit, Lt Governor King of Norfolk Island did all in his power to correct this piece of inhumanity by cultivating the tohunga's friendship. One tangible result being the sketching in chalk on the floor of government house that he had it recorded and compared with the chart compiled by Cook.

It was a pity that Doubtless Bay in the far north was so far from the geographic centre of New Zealand, for being removed from the centre certain distortions appear. It is nevertheless remarkably accurate for the area of the North Island that his tribe were familiar with, but the further south we go confusion of time and distance creeps in. This lack of knowledge of what lies beyond the known world condenses the rest of New Zealand to what northerners of that day regarded as true size.

As the source of supplies of greenstone the South Island for all its remoteness, nevertheless was known in the far north as being more than an off shore island.