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Concept
Māori culture
Summary
Māori culture (Māoritanga) is the customs, cultural practices, and beliefs of the indigenous Māori people of New Zealand. It originated from, and is still part of, Eastern Polynesian culture. Māori culture forms a distinctive part of New Zealand culture and, due to a large diaspora and the incorporation of Māori motifs into popular culture, it is found throughout the world. Within Māoridom, and to a lesser extent throughout New Zealand as a whole, the word Māoritanga is often used as an approximate synonym for Māori culture, the Māori-language suffix -tanga being roughly equivalent to the qualitative noun-ending -ness in English. Māoritanga has also been translated as "[a] Māori way of life." The term kaupapa, meaning the guiding beliefs and principles which act as a base or foundation for behaviour, is also widely used to refer to Māori cultural values.
Four distinct but overlapping cultural eras have contributed historically to Māori culture:
before Māori culture had differentiated itself from other Polynesian cultures (Archaic period)
before widespread European contact (Classic period)
the 19th century, in which Māori began interacting more intensively with European visitors and settlers
the modern era since the beginning of the twentieth century
Māoritanga in the modern era has been shaped by increasing urbanisation, closer contact with Pākehā (New Zealanders of European descent) and revival of traditional practices.
Traditional Māori arts play a large role in New Zealand art. They include whakairo (carving), raranga (weaving), kapa haka (group performance), whaikōrero (oratory), and tā moko (tattoo). The patterns and characters represented record the beliefs and genealogies (whakapapa) of Māori. Practitioners often follow the techniques of their ancestors, but in the 21st century Māoritanga also includes contemporary arts such as film, television, poetry and theatre.
The Māori language is known as te reo Māori, shortened to te reo (literally, "the language").
Official source
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