The first people to inhabit New Zealand
By Yvonne Bouma
1 The Maori were the first people to inhabit the island nation of New Zealand. The word Maori was used in the middle of the last century by the Polynesians. They were seafarers and inhabited many of the Pacific islands.
2 The legends tell of a legendary figure named Kupe. He sailed to Aotearoa (New Zealand) by boat, or waka, in about 950 A.D. They called the new land Aotearoa, Land of the Long White Cloud. Kupe returned home and told people how to sail to New Zealand. In 1350 A.D. a "Great Fleet" landed, and it is believed the present Maori descended from this migration.
3 The Maori society is divided into three main groups. The first group was the whanau or extended family. Several whanau would live together in a village or kainga. This village make up a sub-tribe or hapu. The iwi or tribe was made up of several hapus or family and village groups. The iwis were made up of descendants of a common ancestor.
