From the Polynesian arrival in Aotearoa to the modern day, historians divide the history of the Maori into four periods:
- Nga kakano: The East Polynesian or Archaic period, also referred to as Nga kakano, meaning ‘the seeds’, spanned from about 800 to 1200 CE. This is the time of the first Polynesian settlers and their immediate descendants.
- Te tipunga: The Te tipunga period, meaning ‘the growth’, began on the North Island during the thirteenth century and had spread across New Zealand by the sixteenth century. It was the era of expansion when the Maori discovered and settled the more remote areas of their land and began developing their unique cultural traditions, beliefs and art.
- Te puawaitanga: The Classical Maori period dated from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century...This period is known as Te puawaitanga, or ‘the flowering’, because it is regarded as the time when the most beautiful Maori art was created.
- Te huringa: The final period from the nineteenth century to the present is known as Te huringa, or the ‘turning point’, because it is the time of increased Maori contact with Europeans and the introduction of the modern world into Maori culture.
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