Aotearoa: Introduction to Traditional Maori Society

Description

MAOR107 provides a comprehensive introduction to traditional Māori society, covering a large range of historical and cultural material. MAOR107 follows the movement of Māori people through the Pacific to Aotearoa, examining not only the geographical shift of Māori people but the development changes that shaped Māori. Topics include oral traditions to navigation, warfare, tikanga, traditional environmental knowledge and more.
This paper is an ideal starting point for anyone wishing to pursue a degree in Māori and Indigenous Studies. This content provides a broad introduction to various themes and topics that can be further explored in more advanced papers.
MAOR107 is extremely useful for anyone who wishes to gain a general understanding of Māori cultural themes. This paper is particularly important for people who work in a community role and would like to have a better awareness of Māori culture.
As an introductory paper, you will begin to develop skills in intercultural communication and analytical thinking that can be further improved by subsequent Māori and Indigenous Studies courses.  
Whatever stage of your academic journey, MAOR107 is a great first step on the road to better understanding Māori people.

What we know about traditional Māori society is constantly changing in response to research, and inevitably questions arise:
• Māori, as Polynesian peoples, were the first people to migrate by sea. How did these bold seafarers navigate by the stars, and where and how did Māori journey, and why stop in New Zealand?
• Often depicted as a warrior people it’s often forgotten that Māori were poets, farmers, performers, and philosophers. What were traditional Māori peoples like, what values did they hold, and how did tikanga structure society?
• Taniwha, Mania, Koru, Maunga; Māori symbols are depicted throughout Aotearoa in buildings, tattoo’s and performance to name a few. What are these symbols, what do they symbolise, and what is their history?
• Reports from early explorers were quick to align Māori alongside the practise of cannibalism offering an exotic image. What was the place of cannibalism in traditional Māori society is it depicted accurately?



Some themes in this course are
• Migration, Navigation, Astronomy and Māori Geography
• Oral Traditions
• Tikanga Māori
• Social Organisation and Structure
• Spiritual Belief and Customs
• Environmental knowledge
• The symbolism of land and Meeting houses
• Warfare
• Carving, Tattoo, Weaving and Performing arts
• Leadership
• Ngāi Tahu traditions

Course Goal
• Comprehensively introduce Māori society and structure
• Introduce Students to a Māori world-view
• Challenge conceptions previously ‘known’ about traditional Māori society
• explore the richness and depth of traditional Māori knowledge and its relation to contemporary society

Learning Outcomes
Students will:
• Understand the migration patterns and navigational technology that brought Māori to Aotearoa
• Attain an outlook of traditional Māori society towards a Māori world-view.
• Have an appreciation of tradition Māori culture and the history of modern customs

Why this Paper?
Students taking this paper may be interested in the following career pathways:
• Policy analyst in Māori and Government organisations
• Community development roles especially within Māori and Iwi sectors
• Professional social services, education, health sector roles interfacing with Iwi and Māori organisations.
• Māori and Indigenous Research
• Criminal Justice
• Museum curator
• Librarian


Transferrable Skills:
This course contributes to the development of the following transferable skills:
• Analysis
• Research
• Indigenous world perspective
• Cultural awareness
• Critical Thinking