Please tell me more about the haka.

What was the original purpose among the Maori? When did it start to be used before sport matches? Was there resistance, both from the Maori and Europeans, to using the (sometimes) war challenge in a sporting context? What are some other cool things about the haka I should know, but because I'm a foolish American I don't know to ask?

Talk to me about rugby! The origins of rugby in New Zealand and how come y'all are so awesome at it. And also where the All Black thing comes from.

Were the French ever serious about colonizing New Zealand?

Bro, this is amazing and im going to put it in the sidebar of /r/newzealand.

Chur

This may be a terribly open question, for which I apologise, but what can you tell me about any Maori religion(s)? Are they comparable to the religion(s) of the Aboriginals in Australia? Could you give a quick oversight, maybe?

Someone give /u/Crossynz gold. Intelligent, unbiased answers to all the questions. I'm a kiwi and I was having a big discussion about the treaty with my girlfriend today, and this has helped clear up some things I had trouble wrapping my head around. Thank you

I'm very curious about the treatment of Maori veterans after WWI and WWII. Considering their track record in the wars and their infamous participation in many of the war's grand battles (such as Monte Cassino, for example) - were they included in veteran organizations? Did they receive any veteran benefits (if those existed) or pensions? Were they allowed to participate in parades or other events highlighting the New Zealand war effort in the 20th century?

When you study colonial massacres in the Australian colonies they are universally atrocities committed by settler forces against indigenous people, often groups made up primarily of non - combatants (ie children, women, elderly). But in New Zealand it seems like colonial - era massacres are just as likely to have been carried out by Maori groups as they were against them. Is this an accurate impression? Has there been any critical/academic self reflection by the Maori community about incidents like the Chatham Islands?

I have heard the none of the tribes in the South Island signed the treaty. Is this true? Were/are there any issues around this?

BTW as a South Island kiwi myself I am finding this quite interesting.

Why is "God Defend New Zealand" the national anthem? Are there any other songs that are candidates for NZ's national anthem?

My mum always mentioned how the Dutch where going to take the Maori as slaves but England came here first... (or something like this) can you elaborate? What happened that made the Dutch turn away? Or is my mum misinformed?

What is the New Zealand perspective on the decision not to join the Australian Federation? In Australia it is fairly common knowledge that NZ didn't agree to joining based on the contrast between how Maoris and Australian Aboriginals were treated, but I sense that the decision runs a little deeper than that.

You spoke of mass European emigration to New Zealand post Treaty of Waitangi.

What about the other way around? Did any significant number of Maori use their British citizenship and move anywhere in the British Empire?

I know some Maori went on a visit to England and came back with Muskets.

So I posted this separately because I somehow missed the giant stickied post on the top of the sub. But at the request of the mods, I'm reposting here:

Do the Maori people have oral histories describing their arrival in New Zealand? It's my understanding that the Maori arrived in New Zealand sometime around 1200/1300 AD. This isn't a (relatively) long time before their first contact with Europeans in 1642 AD. There are many cultures with oral histories going back 300 years; so do the Maori have one? Is there any information on their arrival from their point of view? Do we have any names of early Maori explorers/folk heroes from this time period? Are their any records of their impression of the islands before human occupation?

If the answer is no, how do the Maori describe their origins in relation to the islands? Even mythological accounts would be interesting.

Link to the answer given by /u/CrossyNZ

I have been lead to believe (possibly incorrectly) that the Maori had a strong warrior tradition even before the Musket Wars. To what extent was this true? Would any warriors among the Maori be exalted above the rest of their tribe? Also, how much effort was typically spent in a man's life in practicing for warfare?

Seems like it's a good day for me to finally finish watching "What Really Happened: Waitangi." Time-travelling reporter aside, how accurate is the depiction of events in that docu-drama?

How did Maori fight each other?

Did they just approach each other in a line to fight or was it more complicated with flanking and other maneuvers.

Is political correctness as widespread in NZ as it's in the USA? Are there people who advocate affirmative action for the Maori because of historical wrongs caused to them by Europeans?

My parents have retired to Russell, in the bay of islands, north island, and are always telling me the story of flagstaff hill. To what extent are those legends (for lack of a better word) historically accurate?

As a final question before I go to sleep

Why do we have so many sheep?

Talk to me about land restitution. Other Anglo settler colonies have enormous problems with the legacy of colonial dispossession of first peoples and redress of that 19th to 20th c. injustice--except, as conventional wisdom [edit: among at least those of us working on southern Africa] claims, for NZ. Some of the claim is that Waitangi provides a clearer map, or that it was never as rapacious, but I was curious from the standpoint of a NZ historian on the battle for the right to the land past and present.

I realize this theoretically extends into the 20 year proscribed zone, but hopefully such an AMA is a safer space given it is part of a much older historical debate.

What was the attitude of the early New Zealand labour movement to Māori? To what extent was this affected by the level of competition between Pākehā and Māori workers (e.g. did white trade unionists like Māori when they weren't competing with each other for jobs and dislike them when they were)?

Why are there so many Pasifika people in New Zealand? Especially Samoans. As a Samoan, I'm curious about how I have so many cousins in South Auckland and Porirua. I wasn't raised in Samoa, so I have another question related to Samoa-New Zealand relations. From a NZ Historian's perspective, how do you perceive the events surrounding Western Samoa being governed by New Zealand for a short time and then protesting for independence. I'm sorry if these questions aren't relevant to this thread.

Are you able to give me much info on gilbert Mair? (Tawa or tawa Tawhiti I think is what Maori dubbed him) he is my wife great^n grandfather, would be awesome if I could drop some knowledge on her

I'm curious about the cultural context for once were warriors. It was really well received, and has become a part of our culture, yet it touches on a lot of issues to do with maori

where do the primary sources for the musket wars come from?

Bob Marley's birthday is Waitangi Day, and NZ has quite a reggae culture. Is that really part of the NZ culture, or not really that different from the rest of the world?

But in New Zealand/Aotearoa he has been revered. Marley was always big among Maori and Polynesians and it doesn't take a great deal of social analysis to guess why. His was a voice for the politically and financially disenfranchised and the socially oppressed. Yet he stood for dignity, spoke with eloquent simplicity ("get up, stand up, stand up for your rights") and celebrated life and spirituality.
His albums were alternately political and party time. He denied racism and loved kids.
Out of that complex convergence you can see why he held great appeal.
That he had a broad-based Pakeha audience is more knotty but his acceptance - outside of those who simply saw him as legitimising dope smoking - suggests a much greater common ground of shared aspiration and understanding between Maori and Pakeha than some would have us believe.
Marley articulated racial harmony at a time when others would divide us from within for their own agenda, and the coincidence of his birthday and Waitangi Day being one and the same gave us plenty to debate and think about.

http://www.elsewhere.co.nz/reggae/2160/bob-marley-remembered-in-new-zealand-the-symmetry-of-commemorations/

Edit to be sure this meets the 20 year rule: from 1982, a nuclear protest reggae Maori song, popular with Pakeha about Pacific Island colonial history http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/media/video/french-letter

When and why did New Zealand officially adopt the Kiwi Bird and Silver Fern as the national fauna and floral emblems, respectively?

I had the great fortune to visit New Zealand in 1995, and it has left a lasting impression on me. the time I picked to go was June, 1995. This is how I learned what Rugby was, as it was everywhere due to the World Cup.

How exactly did Rugby get so popular in New Zealand is what I'm wondering? (Note I'm not asking about any specific event, I mean the sport in general.)

Also, as a secondary non-Rugby question, while I was there, I ended up talking with a Maori for about a half hour one day. One of the things he told me (with great pride) is that the British were never able to defeat the Maori in a major battle (though the British did win some minor conflicts, he said.) Is this correct? If so, why did the British have so much trouble with the Maori?