Whakapapa

This article is about the Māori term for genealogy. For the ski field, see Whakapapa skifield. For the village, see Whakapapa Village.

Māori woman with a representation of the Waikato Ancestress "Te Iringa"

Whakapapa (Māori pronunciation: [ˈfakapapa], ['ɸa-]), or genealogy, is a fundamental principle in Māori culture. Reciting one's whakapapa proclaims one's Māori identity, places oneself in a wider context, and links oneself to land and tribal groupings and their mana.[1]

Experts in whakapapa can trace and recite a lineage not only through the many generations in a linear sense, but also between such generations in a lateral sense.

  1. ^ "Mihi - Introductions". Māori ki Te Whare Wānanga o Ōtākou / Māori at the University of Otago. University of Otago. Retrieved 11 November 2018.