Māori knowledge of animals

This interactive groups animals through Māori frameworks based on whakapapa. Click on the labels for information about the animal groupings.

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Māori knowledge of animals is underpinned by whakapapa, which in some ways works as an alternative to evolutionary theory in biology.

The text is from Animals of Aotearoa: Kaupapa Māori Summaries. (A version of the text is available as a PDF in te reo Māori only or a bilingual version.)

Click on the labels for information about the animal groupings.

Transcript

Kurī

Kurī were of traditional, cultural and spiritual significance within te ao Māori as recorded in narrative traditions. In terms of whakapapa, the ancestor of kurī was Irawaru, the brother-in-law of Māui.

Kurī were regarded both as ancestors and as kaitiaki or spiritual guardians of particular hapū and kin groups, and these traditions are still passed on today.

Learn more about kurī in this article.

Image: Carved wooden figure of a kurī – one of the oldest known artefacts found in Aotearoa New Zealand. Canterbury Museum E158.356.

Kiore

In one simplified whakapapa tradition, kiore are descendants of Hinamoki, a junior sibling/cousin of Tānemahuta, ancestor of mankind and life on land, in the cosmic whakapapa that structure Māori knowledge of the natural world.

Kiore are recorded as running back to their human owner Ruanui, in traditions from the northern iwi of the Māmari waka. The closeness between humans and kiore explains why kiore featured in wharenui carvings and names of people and places.

Kiore were also part of everyday Māori customs as shown by references in waiata, haka and metaphors captured in whakataukī comparing aspects of kiore life with that of humans.

Learn more about kiore in this article.

Image: Kiore – Pacific rat (Rattus exulans), Cliff, CC BY 2.0

Ngā manu a Tānemahuta

Manu – along with trees and mankind – are descendants of Tāne and therefore related to each other.

Another group name for manu is te aitanga kapakapa a Tāne – the wing-flapping children of Tāne. The forest trees are also called te hua a Tāne – hua meaning both children and the fruits and berries of the trees.

While manu is a generic word for bird, it is also used for other flying things like bats or kites.

In some situations, manu were seen as messengers from spirit worlds carrying warnings or reassurances either from atua sources or from deceased loved ones.

Learn more about ngā manu a Tānemahuta in this article.

Image: Kererū in flight, Shellie Evans, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

Ngā ika a Tangaroa

There are many traditions regarding the whakapapa of fish, but it makes sense to call them the children of Tangaroa since Tangaroa is god of the sea and all that dwell within it.

Learn more about ngā ika a Tangaroa in this article.

Image: Orcas jumping, National Oceanography and Atmospheric Administration (US).

Ngārara – te aitanga a Punga

Ngārara is a term commonly used as a translation for reptiles. However, its traditional meaning also includes insects. Ngārara as an animal grouping is an example of how Māori categories for animals diverge from those of science.

In whakapapa terms, ngārara are the progeny of Punga, son of Tangaroa, whose descendants were said to be ugly and repulsive, hence the name te aitanga a Punga.

Learn more about ngārara – te aitanga a Punga in this article.

Image: Tuatara spines, Bernard Spragg.

Te aitanga pepeke

Te aitanga pepeke equates to the insect world. It calls to whakapapa in the concept of aitanga, meaning living creatures descending from the primordial atua who are the supernatural origins of the natural world.

In this Māori category, pepeke refers both to bent legs and jumping ability.

Learn more about te aitanga pepeke in this article.

Image: Wētā or wētāpunga, Tom Lynch.