A REVIEW OF MAORI ASTRONOMY AOTEAROA-NEW ZEALAND

Across the world indigenous people are seeking to reclaim their traditional knowledge. Within the last fifty years the Maori of Aotearoa-New Zealand' have made significant efforts to reclaim their language, arts and science. Part of this renaissance includes a growing Maori movement to reclaim their astronomical knowledge. Maori astronomical understanding was infused throughout much of pre-colonial Maori life, culture and belief. The Sun, Moon and stars were an integral part of practices pertaining to agriculture, architecture, fishing, calendrical systems and exploration. Although early ethnographers attempted to record this knowledge, their works seem to only reflect a somewhat superficial level of understanding. Thus this paper highlights some of the current research being conducted on Maori astronomy, which seeks a greater understanding of how the ancestors of the Maori perceived the heavens.