‘He Pukapuka Tātaku i ngā Mahi a Te Rauparaha Nui’ is a 50,000-word account of Te Rauparaha’s life written by his son Tamihana Te Rauparaha in the late 1860s. A rich source of Ngāti Toa history, language and culture, it offers fascinating insights into traditional Māori society and the tumultuous history of the 1820s and 1830s. This was an era characterised by intertribal conflict and the redrawing of the tribal map of Aotearoa, as well as by early encounters between Māori and Europeans that were largely conducted on Māori terms. Tamihana’s account of his father’s life has now been published in full for the first time in a parallel Māori/English edition.

In this talk, the book’s translator and editor Ross Calman will discuss the historical context that led to the creation of Tamihana’s manuscript, give an overview of how the manuscript has been represented by various writers and translators over the past 150 years and describe some of the challenges he faced in interpreting the manuscript for a modern audience.

These monthly Public History Talks are a collaboration between the National Library of New Zealand and the Ministry for Culture and Heritage.

Recorded live at the National Library of New Zealand, 2 December 2020.

See also  Te Rauparaha: Kei Wareware podcast series

Today, te reo Māori is recognised as an important part of New Zealand culture and identity. But things were not always so hopeful for the language. By the 1970s, te reo Māori was on the verge of extinction. The long journey of revitalisation has been marked with many challenges and many victories.

Part of the journey was taking Wai 11, the te reo Māori claim, to the Waitangi Tribunal. The resulting report confirmed te reo Māori was a taonga the Crown had to actively protect and contributed to te reo Māori being made an official language in 1987.

Te reo Māori champions Piripi Walker and Justice Joe Williams speak about their own journeys in language revitalisation and the wider movement across the country. A facilitated discussion with Dr Vincent Olsen-Reeder follows.

This talk is in support of the new Te Mana O Te Reo Māori online story, part of Te Tai Treaty Settlement Stories, a programme initiated by Manatū Taonga which aims to enhance understanding of the past by exploring Treaty settlements and their enduring impact.

These monthly Public History Talks are a collaboration between the National Library of New Zealand and the Ministry for Culture and Heritage.

Recorded live at the National Library of New Zealand, 4 November 2020.

When German-Jewish refugees arrived in New Zealand in the 1930s fleeing Hitler’s Europe, they brought everything they could from their former homes: furniture, luggage, personal documents, musical instruments, artwork, books, silverware, linen, a typewriter. Some of these humble and remarkable domestic objects survive today, a few in public heritage collections; most in the private family homes of descendants.

But while the Jewish refugee migration story is well known, less so is the story of those objects. In this talk, Louisa Hormann shares findings from a research project exploring the relationships between Holocaust survivor refugee families, their descendants, and the material objects they have inherited.

These monthly Public History Talks are a collaboration between the National Library of New Zealand and the Ministry for Culture and Heritage.

Recorded live at the National Library of New Zealand, 7 October 2020.

Angela Wanhalla (Kāi Tahu), is an associate professor in the History Programme, University of Otago. She teaches and writes about New Zealand history and is currently involved in a collaborative research project on the histories and legacies of the Māori home front during the Second World War.

In this Public History Talk Angela Wanhalla looks at the recruitment of Māori women into the auxiliary services, why they joined, and how their wartime service impacted on their post-war lives.

These monthly Public History Talks are a collaboration between the National Library of New Zealand and the Ministry for Culture and Heritage.

Recorded live at the National Library of New Zealand, 2 September 2020.

How do we remember the past? What place do colonial memorials have in public spaces? How can we better represent diverse histories in the landscape?

In this first Public History Talk for 2020, Professor of Māori education at Victoria University, Joanna Kidman hosts a panel to discuss these issues and offer a facilitated conversation with the public on colonial memorials, history and memory.

About the panelists:

Morrie Love (Te Atiawa ki te Upoko o te Ika a Mauī, Taranaki, Ngati Ruanui) is Director Raukura Consultants, a writer and historian.

Nicky Karu (Hauraki: Paeroa and Thames Coast) Tira Poutama Iwi Partnerships.

Ewan Morris (Pākehā) is a historian with an interest in public memory and cultural contestation over symbols.

These free Public History Talks are a collaboration between the National Library of New Zealand https://natlib.govt.nz/ and Manatū Taonga/Ministry for Culture and Heritage https://mch.govt.nz/

Recorded live at the National Library of New Zealand, 15 July, 2020.

In this talk, authors Stephanie Gibson, Matariki Williams and Puawai Cairns will provide insights into the stories and objects that fill the recent publication ‘Protest Tautohetohe: Objects of Resistance, Persistence and Defiance’, their material history of activism in Aotearoa New Zealand.

They’ll explore the many ways New Zealanders have spoken up for change, from pulling up survey pegs to marching against the Springbok Tour. They will share histories connected to collection items from institutions around the country that are connected to protest and will discuss our diverse history of objects and images made for causes, from the New Zealand Wars to agitating for women’s rights and protecting the environment. 

These monthly Public History Talks are a collaboration between the National Library of New Zealand https://natlib.govt.nz/ and the Ministry for Culture and Heritage https://mch.govt.nz/.

Recorded live at the National Library of New Zealand, 4 March 2020.

Since 2010, the small town of Wairoa on the East Coast of New Zealand has been at the centre of the most bitter and protracted industrial dispute in New Zealand’s recent history. The agri-business giant, Talley’s Group, took over the town’s meat plant in 2010 and commenced a campaign to ‘draw the line on union influence’.

Drawing on oral histories, this talk by Ross Webb focuses on the campaign by meat workers to save their union, the sacrifices involved, and the legacy of three successive lockouts on workers and the community.

Ross Webb is an historian with an interest in labour history. He is currently a PhD candidate at Victoria University, Wellington.

These monthly Public History Talks are a collaboration between the National Library of New Zealand https://natlib.govt.nz/ and the Ministry for Culture and Heritage https://mch.govt.nz/.

Recorded live at the National Library of New Zealand, 2 October 2019.

From Porgy and Bess to haka, to Elsdon Best and Tuini Ngāwai, Pūkana will range far and wide to give a sense of the ihi, wehi and wana, inherent to Maori performance.

Paul Diamond is lead curator for the Pūkana exhibition, and talks about the background to the exhibition which celebrates Māori performance across time. Paul (Ngāti Hauā, Te Rarawa and Ngāpuhi) was appointed as Curator, Māori at the Alexander Turnbull Library in 2011. He is an author and has also worked as an oral historian and broadcaster.

Pūkana opens on 14 September, 2019 and runs until 23 May 2020 at the National Library of New Zealand, in Wellington New Zealand.

These monthly Public History Talks are a collaboration between the National Library of New Zealand https://natlib.govt.nz/ and the Ministry for Culture and Heritage https://mch.govt.nz/.

Recorded live at the National Library of New Zealand, 4 September 2019.

Please note, due to copyright restrictions, some of  the audio and video excerpts played during the presentation are not able to be republished and the presentation has been edited to reflect this.

In a career that spans more than 30 books, time as a librarian, radio producer and screenwriter, Wellington writer Dame Fiona Kidman also claimed New Zealand's most prestigious literary prize in 2019. At the 51st Ockham Book Awards. This Mortal Boy was awarded the Acorn Foundation's Prize for Fiction.

In this Public History Talk, Dame Fiona talks about her latest work which explores one of New Zealand's last executions, and the events that followed.

These monthly Public History Talks are a collaboration between the National Library of New Zealand https://natlib.govt.nz/ and the Ministry for Culture and Heritage https://mch.govt.nz/.

 Recorded live at the National Library of New Zealand, 7 August 2019. 

The Tararua Tramping Club (TTC) was founded in 1919. At that time, most people in New Zealand viewed tramping as an odd form of recreation, but today tramping has become one of New Zealand’s most popular leisure pursuits. The club also fostered climbing, embraced skiing and encouraged women to participate in all these activities. And its leaders encouraged the formation of other clubs throughout the country.

In this presentation, freelance writer and photographer Shaun Barnett and author Chris Maclean will explore the context of 100 years of organised tramping in New Zealand, how the club formed, why it was a success and how it set a model for other clubs to follow.

These monthly Public History Talks are a collaboration between the National Library of New Zealand https://natlib.govt.nz/ and the Ministry for Culture and Heritage https://mch.govt.nz/.

Recorded live at the National Library of New Zealand, 3 July 2019.