Te Ana Māori Rock Art

About

Discover the stories of Māori rock art at our tribal Rock Art Centre. See the most significant collection of ancient Māori rock art in New Zealand.

Story

Ngāi Tahu Whānui is the most widespread Māori tribe of Te Waipounamu, the South Island of New Zealand. Our whakapapa (genealogy) binds us to this land, and to our ancestors who discovered, explored and settled it.

Ngāi Tahu are an indigenous people of the South Island. We are an amalgamation of Waitaha, the first people to settle here about 700 years ago, and Ngāti Mamoe and Ngāi Tahu who migrated later from the North Island. Today we go by ‘Ngāi Tahu’, or sometimes ‘Ngāi Tahu Whānui’ which emphasises our strands of genealogy. Our traditional tribal area extends over Rakiura (Stewart Is.) and all of Te Waipounamu (South Is.) excepting the Nelson and Blenheim areas. European colonisation saw most of the tribe’s land taken by unjust land sales even though the Treaty of Waitangi was signed with the British in 1840. With insufficient land and resources Ngāi Tahu became some of the poorest people in New Zealand.

To learn more about the history of Ngāi Tahu click here.

Since the 1980’s Ngāi Tahu has developed successful business operations in property, seafood and tourism. In 1995 the Government finally settled Ngāi Tahu’s historical land claim. Today Ngāi Tahu is again a major economic identity in our own home generating resources to fund education and welfare initiatives for 40,000 members and protect our living cultural heritage and landscape. We have 18 Runanga (local committees) based around marae - our traditional community centres. They work to ensure that our past is remembered and that our sense of connection to our cultural places, treasures and each other is carried into the future. As our tribal motto says, “Mō tātou, ā, mō kā uri ā muri ake nei” - for us and our children after us.