Important tribal histories Horouta and Te Arawa available once more

Oratia Books is delighted to welcome back into print two major works of Māori history, which will be available to readers from this Wednesday 27 July. 

Horouta: The History of the Horouta Canoe, Gisborne and East Coast and Te Arawa: A History of the Arawa People are works of great mana that retain relevance to descendants of these waka groupings, and are of interest to readers far and wide.

Horouta is the definitive history of the descendants of the voyaging canoes that brought the first settlers from Hawaiki to the lands that stretch from East Cape to northern Hawke’s Bay.

Assembled through painstaking historical and genealogical research over more than 70 years by Rongowhakaata Halbert and his family, the book includes detailed chapters based on oral and written history about the settlement of the East Coast, along with extensive genealogy charts and detailed maps relating to the region.

Published in partnership with the Rongowhakaata Halbert Trust, this reprint marks ten years since the launch of this edition.

Te Arawa is the major work by Don Stafford, one of the leading historians of pre-European New Zealand who was also the official historian of Rotorua. 

The book tells the complete history of the Te Arawa waka and its descendants until the late nineteenth century. Its import is summed up in the preface to this 2016 edition by Te Arawa descendant and scholar Paora Tapsell:

Amongst all the tribal histories Te Arawa is unique. It goes to the very heart of identity of a people reaching back to ancient times deep in the Pacific. Those who control history control the world. In no small way Te Arawa stands proud today due to Don Stafford’s words. Te Arawa is his memorial to our people, our nation, whom he loved and who in turned loved him like a father.

This monumental work of scholarship is also an impressive physical artefact that includes photographic pages on glossy paper and extensive whakapapa.

The authors

Rongowhakaata Halbert (1894–1973) was an authority on East Coast genealogy and history, renowned for his command of te Reo Maori. Of Rongowhakaata, Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki and Te Whakatōhea descent, he was a member of many eminent boards, and adviser on Maori issues and language to bodies including the Maori Land Court, the Polynesian Society and the Department of Education. Horouta, his life’s work, was brought to publication after his death by his descendants, led in the last stages by the late Te Nonoikura Haronga and the late Peter Gordon. See https://teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/4h4/halbert-rongowhakaata-pere

Don Stafford (1927–2010) was an historian and writer who dedicated his life and work to Rotorua and its environs. Through a long and distinguished career, he wrote over 20 books on Rotorua and its history. Fluent in te reo Māori, Don travelled on foot to every corner of Te Arawa’s rohe, and played a significant role in preservation of historical sites and objects. He was Rotorua’s official historian, and received honours including an MBE, CBE and honorary doctorate. See https://nzhistory.govt.nz/people/don-stafford

Back in print: 27 July 2022  

HOROUTA   ISBN: 978-0-947506-20-9 | RRP $125

Jacketed hardback, 280 x 210 mm portrait, 496 pages

TE ARAWA   ISBN: 978-0-947506-10-0 | RRP $98

Jacketed hardback, 240 x 15o mm portrait, 616 pages

New book, old book – celebrating Rotorua and A.W. Reed

A new facsimile edition of the A.W. Reed and Dennis Turner classic Legends of Rotorua and the Hot Lakes hits the bookshelves today.

Several generations of readers have learned of key elements of Māori history from the pen of the late Alexander Wyclif Reed. His list of published works in this area is long and deep and his popularity has rarely waned.

In Legends of Rotorua and the Hot Lakes, first published in 1958, Reed collected many of  the classic myths from that cradle of Māori culture, Rotorua – with relevance across New Zealand.

Legends of Rotorua and the Hot Lakes brings together the timeless accounts of great ancestors such as Ngatoro-i-rangi and Ihenga with beloved stories like those of Hinemoa and Tutanekai, or Hatupatu and the Birdwoman. 

It presents many legends and historical events in relation to localities, lakes and volcanoes around the Rotorua region — the township, Lake Rotorua, Mokoia, Ngongotaha, Tarawera and beyond — and includes a chapter on place names. 

This facsimile edition reproduces the original edition, speaking to the era of the book’s original publication, with A.W. Reed’s graceful text matched by the beautiful and detailed illustrations of Dennis Turner.

A.W. Reed (1908–1979) was one of New Zealand’s most influential writers and publishers. He helped build A.H. & A.W. Reed into the country’s leading publisher by the mid-twentieth century, and authored more than 200 books. His works on Māori mythology have served New Zealanders for several generations.

Publication: 20 March 2019  |  ISBN: 978-0-947506-57-5 |  RRP $29.99

Paperback, 210 x 148 mm, 164 pages b&w

Pūkaki — the comet returns in sparkling te Reo translation

Out in time for Māori Language Week 2017 (from 11 September), Pūkaki – Te Hokinga Mai o te Auahitūroa is a significant body of work in te Reo that will serve readers for years to come.

First published in English in 2000, Pūkaki – a comet returns won Paul Tapsell a Best First Book Award in the Montana Book Awards 2001. 

A grant from the Ngati Whakaue Education Endowment Trust has enabled the work to be revised — Paul has added a new chapter to bring it up to the present day – and then fully translated into Māori by TV presenter, author and te Reo advocate Scotty Te Manahau Morrison.

A page spread from Pūkaki

Scotty's translation of this large, colour work has been a significant undertaking that reflects the regional Reo of the Rotorua area.

Pūkaki — Te Hokinga Mai o te Auahitūroa records the life and transformations of Pūkaki, ancestral father of Ngāti Whakaue of Te Arawa. From mortal rangatira to icon in the Te Maori exhibition, the book follows Pūkaki on his return home to Rotorua in 1997, his representation on New Zealand’s 20-cent coin, and his subsequent relocation to the Rotorua Museum.

An asset for present and future generations of Māori speakers, Pūkaki will be blessed and presented at meeting of the Pukaki Trust in Rotorua on 14 September, during Māori Language Week. It is on sale now at all good booksellers.

Click here for more information. 

Professor Paul Tapsell

Scotty Morrison

Publication Date: 14 September 2017  |  ISBN: 978-0-947506-25-4  |  RRP $39.99

Paperback, 248 x 248 mm, 188 pages colour

Back in the bookstores: A Wild Wind from the North

Hongi Hika’s invasion of the Rotorua area in 1823 is one of the most dramatic and daring assaults ever in New Zealand. Yet like much of our early history, the details are unknown to many New Zealanders.

Don Stafford
(photo © Kerrie Grant)

The late Don Stafford committed himself to redress that imbalance – arguing throughout his distinguished career that events like the Musket Wars deserve to be studied no less than the Napoleonic Wars of the same period.

The distinguished historican dedicated his life and work to the Rotorua district, writing over 20 books on Rotorua and its history, including the monumental Te Arawa (published in a new edition last year by Oratia). 

In A Wild Wind from the North: Hongi Hika's 1823 invasion of Rotorua, Stafford tells how Hongi’s Ngāpuhi forces roamed the North Island from the late 1810s seeking utu (revenge) for past slights. 

Te Arawa, inland and with their island stronghold of Mokoia on Lake Rotorua, felt impregnable. 

They did not count on Hongi’s epic portage of canoes to the lake shores, from which an attack on Mokoia became inevitable.

A Wild Wind from the North not only tells the story with Stafford’s flair and, but is also richly illustrated, including modern photos of the locations depicted. 

This new printing in a handsome hardback keeps true to Don's commitment to the great stories of our past. Click here for more info. 

A Wild Wind from the North

Publication Date: 18 May 2017  |  ISBN: 978-0-947506-23-0 |  RRP $39.99

Hardback, 180 x 140 mm, 160 pages b&w (including 8 pages colour)

Rotorua hosts launch for a special book on Māori tools and carving

Te Toki me te Whao: The Story and Use of Māori Tools was launched at the Te Puia retail store last Friday 11 November.

Author Clive Fugill is the long-standing Master Carver in the carving school at the New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute, which forms part of Te Puia.

His book provides the perspective of an esteemed practitioner on the origins, manufacture and use of tools in Māori arts and daily life.

It is also the first book on the subject in over a century.

The title means ‘The Adze and the Chisel’.

Addressing guests at the launch, Māori Arts and Crafts Institute General Manager Eraia Kiel noted that the title is very appropriate, as it highlights the key tools for carving.

Author Clive Fugill (left) being greeted by Eraia Kiel, General Manager
of the New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute

The book also covers the place of tools in mythology, usage elsewhere in the Pacific, and modern adaptations.

Clive Fugill (centre) with colleagues from the carving school

It is liberally illustrated with striking drawings by the author, and includes photos by Chris Hoult (who also took the featured launch photos).

Clive acknowledged the endorsement of Te Puia in bringing to fruition the book, which preserves knowledge that he has accumulated since he acquired his first adze at the age of nine.

Te Toki me te Whao  |  ISBN: 978-0-947506-13-1  |  RRP $39.99

Paperback, 250 x 185 mm portrait, 160 pages (8 pages colour)

Publisher Peter Dowling of Oratia Books (left), with Clive Fugill and Eraia Kiel

Clive Fugill signing books at the launch

All photos courtesy Chris Hoult: https://chphotographydotcodotnz.wordpress.com