ABSTRACT

Maori discovered and settled the lands and waters of Aotearoa New Zealand sometime after ad 800. Maori began a noticeable drift from rural to urban living, now more than 80 per cent of Maori live in cities, notably Auckland and Hamilton. Many Maori have retained strong cultural links to their tribal areas, in particular visiting marae for family celebrations and funerals. Regarded as a treasure in the Maori world, for centuries Maori have traded pounamu for use historically to be turned into chisels, adzes, fishing hooks, weapons and pendants. The stone is found in the mountains and rivers on the west coast of the South Island. Maori are regaining control of their affairs boosted by Treaty of Waitangi claim settlements. In Aotearoa New Zealand, British sovereignty was in part derived from a treaty of cession, the Treaty of Waitangi, and the applied English common law doctrine of discovery that has its roots in international law.