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    Keeping taonga warm : Aotearoa New Zealand's museums and Maori tapu material : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Anthropology, Palmerston North, Social Anthropology Programme, School of Global Studies, Massey University
    (Massey University, 2003) Park, Marilyn
    This thesis is an interpretative viewpoint from a Aotearoa New Zealand tauiwi, of the importance of the spiritual meaning of taonga and their related concepts of tapu, mana and wairua to Maori, both in the past and today. It is concerned primarily with how taonga and their tapu nature have been addressed by Aotearoa New Zealand's museums, historically and contemporarily, and by the anthropologists and archaeologists and ethnologists working within them. While related issues include all indigenous secret and sacred material, both tangible and intangible, I am primarily interested in how museum professionals, expecially anthropologists and archaeologists working within New Zealand Museums, have incorporated the concept of tapu into their engagement with Maori taonga, and how they resolve their own beliefs with those of Maori. I am specifically concerned with how Maori taonga are kept spiritually ' warm,' by non-Maori museum personnel concerned with their physical care. This involves an analysis of museum traditions and past historical influences now affecting Aotearoa New Zealand today. This discussion begins with an explanation of the author's ontological viewpoint and reasons for writing this, and sets the terms of reference for the following discussions. Chapter One examines of the meaning of tapu, taonga and their related concepts, the way in which early writers and ethnologists have dealt with this subject historically, and the impact that this had on the current museological climate as well as interpretations by current writers including Maori and anthropologists. Chapter Two shows how scientific interests took precedence over Maori tapu concerns in early museum practice, both in collecting habits, display and in the interpretation of Maori tikanga, by ethnologists and museum management. Chapter Three discusses the recent changes in the management of some Aotearoa New Zealand's museums, the effect of professional guidelines and specific pieces of legislation on both Maori and museums, nationally and internationally. Recent changes include bicultural management within some museum management structures, iwi liaison committees within others, and current Maori initiatives in respect to the management of koiwi tangata. Chapter Four examines the impact that the changing attitudes towards Maori issues by non-Maori staff have had in Aotearoa New Zealand's Museums, regarding Maori access to taonga, the handling of taonga by non-museum staff, conservation issues and what the situation is today and where it is going. In the Conclusion I argue that, rather than a growth in understanding of Maori concerns regarding the care of and access to taonga held in Aotearoa New Zealand's museums, and of their tapu regulations, and the implications of these to the current well-being of specific iwi, a process of 'managerialization' of tapu concerns has been instigated in all major museums in Aotearoa New Zealand, and with some variations, within some other smaller ones. This has resulted in the decision making passing into the hands of iwi or joint management committees, whereby individual curators, collection managers and ethnologists no longer need to understand these issues deeply. Finally, I emphasise that only museums who actively pursue a co-operative relationship with their local iwi or marae will be visited by the local Maori community and continue to be allowed to continue to care for these important links from the past with the Maori of today. This should involve a repatriation of stolen taonga, koiwi tangata and mokomokai and retraining of museum staff in tikanga and Maori issues. It is not enough to 'pass the buck' and ignore the issues involved.
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    Māori culture at the digital interface : a study of the articulation of culture in the online environment : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Visual and Material Culture at Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2014) Brocklehurst, Nikolas Troy
    Once lit, the digital ahikā have burnt brightly for Māori. With the increasingly multimodal internet arguably becomes the first port of call for students, academics, and the general public alike. How Māori culture is articulated has never had to be considered in the face of such a potential global audience. This thesis examines Māoridom in the digital space, its central question is: How is the online environment being used to articulate Māori culture? Examining three contemporary case studies of Māori online presence on websites that are either created and run by Māori or had significant Māori input and/or content, this thesis questions whether the case studies dispositions toward the online environment manifest themselves within the digital space. And whether this effects their articulation of Māori culture through that medium. With particular attention given to the specificities of the digital environ, as to how it alters or determines the effectiveness of this articulation, this study highlights specific Maori practices and how utilising the digital space in accordance with its own unique attributes is producing certain representations of Māori culture. Moreover, taonga as uniquely active agents in Māori conceptuality and a common thread that runs across the sites examined, receive special focus with respect to their digital embodiments. Incorporating a comparative approach, attempts are made to explicate the intricacies of particular examples. This research contends that embracing the specificity of the digital space enables those within it to produce a more effectual articulation of Māori cultural identity. More so, a failure to do so produces a questionable representation of Māori culture. The results reveal an increasingly dynamic utilisation of digital media within Māori culture. But perhaps most importantly it is a timely reminder that in the rush to digitise and open museum collections to an increasingly skilful and astute online audience, the cultural sector of Aotearoa New Zealand needs not to forgo their intention of being forums of change and substitute quality for quantity.
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    Te Maori past and present : stories of Te Maori : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Social Anthropology at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1996) Butler, Philippa Jane
    Te Maori has been acknowledged as an exhibition of great power, an event that had tremendous impact on New Zealand museums, Maori, and New Zealand in general. It generated a lot of comment, both at the time and in subsequent years. This thesis examines the story of Te Maori. It begins with the telling of the story of the event - the dawn opening ceremonies, their impact on the popular imagination of the American and New Zealand public, and the impact of the taonga themselves. The thesis then argues that, while this account is 'Te Maori', Te Maori is also wider than those events. Te Maori is also the stories and accounts and attempts at analysis that accompanied and followed those events. In that vein, those stories are examined - the story of Te Maori, the story of the stories. The articles discussed are more than just accounts of an exhibition, they are also part of that exhibition - part of the tradition and momentum generated. The thesis then moves on to document the story of someone who was involved with the Te Maori Management Committee, Mina McKenzie. This story shows that the process through which things were done, and the energy so generated, were essential to the success of the exhibition. Finally, a more 'anthropological' story is offered, which situates the issues raised by the various accounts within anthropology. By presenting many different perspectives on the one event, it is suggested that a more accurate, more complete telling of Te Maori is rendered.
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    Manahau: Toward an Indigenous Māori theory of value
    (Springer, 16/02/2022) Mika JP; Dell K; Newth J; Houkamau C; Vandekerckhove, W
    The theoretical challenge posed by this paper is to find a conceptualisation of value for entrepreneurship theory grounded in Indigenous knowledge from a Māori perspective capable of guiding entrepreneurs operating for sustainability and wellbeing. We review Western and Māori theories of value, values, and valuation. We argue that Indigenous concepts of value centre on collective wellbeing as opposed to self-interest, and have spiritual and material elements. The paper proposes a tentative Māori theory of value we call manahau, which combines mana (power, authority, and dignity) and hau (vitality of people, places, and objects). We define manahau as an axiological agent Māori entrepreneurs employ to synergistically negotiate cultural and commercial imperatives to achieve multidimensional wellbeing, human potential, and relational balance. We discuss research which illustrates manifestations of manahau in the Māori cultural ethics of utu (reciprocity) in Māori entrepreneurship and tauutuutu (reciprocity and balance) in Māori agribusiness. We argue that an Indigenous Māori theory of value has implications for entrepreneurship theory and practice.