'New Zealand’s greatest tribal history' returns to print

Tuhoe, volume 1

Tuhoe

The Children of the Mist

Elsdon Best

Preface to the fifth edition by Rāpata Wiri

The work that has been called 'New Zealand’s greatest tribal history' returns to print a century after its first publication, in quality hardback volumes

 

‘As a tribal historian and a Tūhoe descendant, I believe we are  fortunate that this book was published; otherwise our tribal histories and our whakapapa may have been lost forever.’

Rāpata Wiri, from the preface

Tuhoe, volume 2

Oratia Books is honoured to bring back into print what has been described as ‘New Zealand’s greatest tribal history’, 100 years on from its first publication.

Tuhoe: The Children of the Mist is a monumental publication in its own right, with a first volume of over 1200 pages and a second that presents detailed whakapapa (genealogical charts) and maps.

During the early twentieth century ethnologist Elsdon Best lived for many years in the Urewera country. He carefully documented the culture, beliefs, customs and whakapapa of the Ngāi Tūhoe people – whom he called ‘the children of the mist’.

This celebrated two-volume work comes back into print with the guidance of scholar Dr Rāpata Wiri (Ngāi Tūhoe, Ngāti Ruapani), whose doctoral thesis provided a re-evaluation of Best’s work.

Volume 1 presents Best’s history of the Urewera, from the first settlement from Polynesia through to the arrival of Europeans and resultant conflict. In great detail he presents the

traditions, myths, religious beliefs and practices of the Urewera peoples.

The large-format volume 2 contains the many whakapapa relating to Ngāi Tūhoe and other iwi descended from the Mātaatua waka. 

A slipcased set is available for book lovers and collectors.

Tuhoe: The Children of the Mist is on sale in bookstores nationwide and in Australia.

The Author

Elsdon Best lived from 1895 to 1910 among the Ngāi Tūhoe people in the then-remote Te Urewera, where European presence was minimal. He filled notebooks with information that took shape in the present book. Eventually he became an officer of the Dominion Museum, where he compiled many publications. He was a foundation member of the Polynesian Society, and in 1914 was awarded the Hector medal for research in ethnology. Elsdon Best passed away in 1931.

Publication: 12 November 2025

Vol. 1, ISBN: 978-1-99-004286-7  |  RRP $100  |  Hardback, 212 x 130 mm portrait, 1232 pages, b&w

Vol. 2, ISBN: 978-1-99-004287-4  |  RRP $65  |  Hardback, 213 x 278 mm portrait, 104 pp, b&w

Slipcased set, ISBN: 978-1-99-004291-1  |  RRP $175