Voices of our ancestors

Kā puna kōrero o Kāi Tahu

I tēnei whataraki he nui tou kā whakaahua mai i ētahi o kā puraka matatini i te tari o te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga ki Ōtautahi e pā ana ki a Kāi Tahu ki Waitaha, ki te Tai Poutini hoki. Ko puta mai ēnei i kā mahi kātahi o kā kaimahi mai i te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, me ērā mākai o te hāpori whānui; ā, ko ēnei mahi kia whai atu, kia whakarite mō te rorohiko, kia puta anō hoki ko ēnei pāroko e pā ana ki kā mahi a Kāi Tahu me te Kāwanataka i tēnei takiwā tou.

Ko tirohia e tēnei rōpū mahi kā take katoa e pā ana ki te tuku atu i kā kōrero me kā pūroko nei mā te ipuraki, ā, ko kātahi te whakaaro, arā e pai tou ana te tuku atu mā tēnei ara. I ētahi wā ko whakatau te rōpū nei kia kauraka ētahi o kā kōrero e puta ki te matatini, ekari kē mā te ipuraki tou o Kāi Tahu, he mea whita tou mā te iwi. Ko ērā ka noho whita tou ka kitea kā ikoa ki konei. Ko kā kōrero katoa ka kite atu i te whataraki nei ka kite atu i te tari o Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga ki Ōtautahi.

This website contains images of selected public archives held by the Christchurch office of Archives New Zealand relating to Ngāi Tahu communities in Canterbury and Westland. It is the result of a collaborative effort by Archives New Zealand staff and representatives of those communities to identify, digitise and make available online significant local public archives documenting transactions between Ngāi Tahu and the Government in the region.

The consultation group has considered the appropriateness of publishing such documents online and has agreed to these items being made available in this manner. In a few instances it has been considered more appropriate for the item to be made available online via the Ngāi Tahu secure website, and these documents are noted here. All items are available for research at the Archives New Zealand Christchurch Office.

Kā Kōnae o kā Take Motuhake

Ko kā mea ka kite atu i konei ko ērā tuhika me ērā rīpoata mai i kā papatipu rūnaka, i whakawhiwhia rānei e te Kāwanatanga o te rohe, mai i kā tau 1853 ki te tau 1877, ā, ko kohikohia mā ēnei kōnae take motuhake.

Ko kā kōrero ko puta i te Kāwanataka ā rohe o Waitaha, he nui tou kā tū kaupapa, ā, ko ahu mai i ērā reta, i ērā pāroko ki te rōpū rā, ekari ko noho motuhake kia kawari ake ai te whaiwhai haere, te whakapuakataka hoki. Ko ēnei take katoa he nui tou ki te Kāwanataka ā Rohe, ā, i ētahi wā he nui tou kā tau i whai take ai ēnei mahi, nā whai anō pea te noho motuhake o ēnei kōnae.

I ētahi wā ko whakatau he pai pea ake mēnā ka noho ētahi o kā kōrero ki te wāhi whataraki o Kāi Tahu ake, he mea whita, he mea mā te iwi, ā, ko ētahi atu kai te tari tou o te Rua Māhara o te Kāwangatanga ki Ōtautahi, kai tō mātou taiwhaka pānui, ko ēnei mea katoa ko whakarāraki ki raro iho nei.

Special Subject Files

The items on display are from correspondence and reports on local rūnaka created or received by the Provincial Government between 1853-1877 and eventually collected together as part of their Special Subject Files series.

This series from the Canterbury Provincial Government is made up of files on many different subjects which appear to have been extracted from the various inwards correspondence series, and kept physically separate for convenience of reference. The subjects covered were all of importance to the Provincial Government, and were often dealt with over a number of years, which may account for the separation of these files.

In a few instances it has been considered more appropriate for the item to be made available online via the Ngāi Tahu secure website or in the Archives New Zealand Christchurch Office reading room, and these documents are noted below.