Rauemi matua

Scope and Contents A transcript made by Professor Bruce Biggs of portions of vols. 6 and 7 of W.G. Mair's Native Land Court Notebooks, 1883-91, concerning the Rohe Pootae case, a contest for ownership of a block of land in the King Country by five tribes. The hearings were conducted in Otorohanga and were notable for their orderly proceedings. Judge Mair was commended for his handling of the case. Professor Biggs has attempted some analysis, by hyphenation, of many of the place-...

Scope and Contents note In the nineteenth century, customary Maori knowledge that had previously been transmitted orally in whare wananga began to be recorded on paper. H. T. Whatahoro, also known as Hoani Te Whatahoro Jury, of Ngati Kahungunu and European descent, was one of several who wrote down significant amounts of this oral tradition and history between the mid-nineteenth and early twentieth centuries by acting as scribes for tohunga. Copies were made of the writings to ensure preservation and, not...