A kāinga (Southern Māori kaika or kaik) is the traditional form of village habitation of pre-European Māori in New Zealand. It was unfortified or only lightly fortified, and over time became less important to the well-defended pā.
Description
editKāinga were generally unfortified or only lightly fortified, as opposed to the well-defended pā. They were generally coastal, and often found near to a river mouth.[1] The settlement was generally occupied by members of one hapū (sub-tribe), which would identify itself with the nearest mountain and river (even in modern Māori, when meeting someone new, "what is your mountain?" is not an unusual question, and naming a mountain and river is a standard part of a traditional introduction or pepeha).
Kāinga were often regarded as only semi-permanent settlements, and they were often abandoned. Reasons for abandonment included invasion by other iwi or resource shortages. Traditionally, Māori were often semi-nomadic, with entire communities moving at harvest or to hunt, using the kāinga as a stable home base. An entire settlement could be declared tapu on the death of a tribal elder, with its inhabitants moving to a new location nearby.[2] Takapūneke near present-day Akaroa, for example, was subject to a massacre in 1830. Survivors mostly lived in nearby Ōnuku and Takapūneke having been declared a sacred site, it was avoided by the local hapū for over 100 years.[3]
When European whalers arrived in New Zealand and established bases, kāinga would often shift to near the newcomers so that trading would be easier.[2]
Modern use of the word
editIn modern Māori, kāinga is the word for "home".[4][page needed]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Royal, Te Ahukaramū Charles (24 September 2007). "Kāinga – Māori settlement". Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 16 November 2019.
- ^ a b "Pa and Kainga". The Prow. Retrieved 16 November 2019.
- ^ Takapūneke Reserve Management Plan (PDF). Christchurch City Council. 2018. p. 9. Retrieved 25 February 2020.
- ^ Ryan, P. M. (2008). The Raupō Dictionary of Modern Māori. Raupō. ISBN 978-0-143-00932-0.