Pākehā
Pākehā (or Pakeha without
Historically, before the arrival of other
Opinions of the term vary amongst European New Zealanders. A survey of 6,507 New Zealanders in 2009 showed no support for the claim that the term Pākehā is associated with a negative evaluation;
Meaning
The Oxford general English language dictionary defines Pākehā as 'a white New Zealander', The Oxford Dictionary of New Zealandisms (2010) defines Pākehā as a noun 'a light-skinned non-Polynesian New Zealander, especially one of British birth or ancestry as distinct from a Māori; a European or white person'; and as an adjective 'of or relating to Pākehā; non-Māori; European, white'.[11][12]
Māori in the
However, The Concise Māori Dictionary (Kāretu, 1990) defines the word Pākehā as 'foreign, foreigner (usually applied to white person)', while the English–Māori, Māori–English Dictionary (Biggs, 1990) defines Pākehā as 'white (person)'. Sometimes the term applies more widely to include all non-
Etymology
The etymology of Pākehā is unknown, although the most likely sources are the words pākehakeha or
In her book The Trial of the Cannibal Dog: The Remarkable Story of Captain Cook's Encounters in the South Seas, the anthropologist
There have been several dubious interpretations given to the word. One claims that it derives from poaka, the Māori word for pig, and keha, one of the Māori words for flea, and therefore expresses derogatory implications.[22] There is no etymological support for this notion—like all Polynesian languages, Māori is generally very conservative in terms of vowels; it would be extremely unusual for pā- to derive from poaka. The word poaka itself may come from the proto-Polynesian root puaka, known in every Polynesian language (puaka in Tongan, Uvean, Futunian, Rapa, Marquisian, Niuean, Rarotongan, Tokelauan, and Tuvaluan; it evolved to the later form puaʻa in Samoan, Tahitian, some Rapa dialects, and Hawaiian); or it might be borrowed or mixed with the English 'porker'. It is hard to say, since Polynesian peoples populated their islands bringing pigs with them from East Asia, but no pigs were brought to Aotearoa by them. The more common Māori word for flea is puruhi. It is also sometimes claimed that Pākehā means 'white pig' or 'unwelcome white stranger'. However, no part of the word signifies 'pig', 'white', 'unwelcome', or 'stranger'.[23]
Attitudes to the term
New Zealanders of European ancestry vary in their attitudes toward the word Pākehā when applied to themselves.[24][9] Some embrace it wholeheartedly as a sign of their connection to New Zealand, in contrast to the European identity of their forebears. Others object to the word,[8] some strongly, saying it is offensive in origin, claiming it to be derogatory or to carry implications of being an outsider, although this is often based on false information about the meaning of the term.[25] Some believe being labelled Pākehā compromises their status and their birthright links to New Zealand.[26] In the 1986 census, over 36,000 respondents ignored the ethnicities offered, including Pākehā, writing-in their ethnicity as 'New Zealander', or ignoring the question completely.[24] A joint response code of 'NZ European or Pakeha' was tried in the 1996 census, but was replaced by "New Zealand European" in later censuses because it drew what Statistics New Zealand described as a "significant adverse reaction from some respondents".[27] Sociologist Paul Spoonley criticised the new version, however, saying that many Pākehā would not identify as European.[28]
The term Pākehā is also sometimes used among New Zealanders of European ancestry in distinction to the Māori term tauiwi (foreigner), as an act of emphasising their claims of belonging to the space of New Zealand in contrast to more recent arrivals.
The term is commonly used by a range of journalists and columnists from The New Zealand Herald, the country's largest-circulation daily newspaper.[30] Historian Judith Binney called herself a Pākehā and said, "I think it is the most simple and practical term. It is a name given to us by Māori. It has no pejorative associations like people think it does—it's a descriptive term. I think it's nice to have a name the people who live here gave you, because that's what I am."[31] New Zealand writer and historian Michael King wrote in 1985: "To say something is Pakeha in character is not to diminish its New Zealand-ness, as some people imply. It is to emphasise it."[32] New Zealand politicians from across the political spectrum use the term, including Don Brash,[33] John Key,[34] Helen Clark[35] and Te Ururoa Flavell.[36]
See also
- European New Zealanders
- Europeans in Oceania
- Gaijin, "foreigner" in Japanese
- Laowai, Mandarin slang for "foreigner"
- Pākehā settlers
- Pākehā privilege
References
- ISBN 978-0-19-558451-6
- ^ a b Pākehā: New Zealander of European descent, Kupu.maori.nz, archived from the original on 15 August 2017, retrieved 16 September 2017
- ^ Ranford, Jodie. "'Pakeha', Its Origin and Meaning". Māori News. Archived from the original on 24 February 2011. Retrieved 20 February 2008.
One approach continues the references to those with white skin colour while the more inclusive refers to all those who are non-Maori appears to be gaining currency. Today 'Pakeha' is used to describe any peoples of non-Maori or non-Polynesian heritage
- ^ "Pakeha". Merriam-Webster. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
- ^ Language of the Islands: A Papa'a's Guide Archived 11 May 2011 at the Wayback Machine, http://www.cookislands.org.uk Archived 20 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 18 November 2010.
- ^ Nicholas, John Liddiard (1817). "Narrative of a voyage to New Zealand, performed in the years 1814 and 1815, in company with the Rev. Samuel Marsden". J. Black and son, London. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
- .
- ^ a b c Mulgan, R.G. and Aimer, P. "Politics in New Zealand Archived 15 September 2017 at the Wayback Machine" 3rd ed., Auckland University Press pp.29–31
- ^ a b Research busts myth that "Pākehā" is a derogatory term, archived from the original on 18 May 2017, retrieved 31 March 2017
- ^ "Pakeha not a dirty word – survey", NZ Herald, 5 February 2013, retrieved 31 March 2017
- )
- OCLC 608074715.
- ISBN 978-1-877242-38-0. Chapter 13, "The Māori Leaders' Assembly, Kororipo Pā, 1831", by Manuka Henare, pp 114–116.
- ^ Māori Dictionary, Maoridictionary.co.nz, archived from the original on 29 April 2013, retrieved 31 May 2013
- ^ Māori Dictionary, Maoridictionary.co.nz, archived from the original on 29 April 2013, retrieved 31 May 2013
- ^ Māori Dictionary, Maoridictionary.co.nz, 30 June 1903, archived from the original on 29 April 2013, retrieved 31 May 2013
- ^ The First Pakehas to Visit The Bay of Islands, Teaohou.natlib.govt.nz, archived from the original on 12 January 2014, retrieved 31 May 2013
- ISBN 1-86946-949-6. Page 193, second meaning.
- ^ Ranford, Jodie. "'Pakeha', its origin and meaning". www.maorinews.com. Archived from the original on 24 February 2011. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
- ^ Binney, Judith (December 1984). "Myth and explanation in the Ringatū tradition: some aspects of the leadership of Te Kooti Arikirangi Te Turuki and Rua Kēnana Hepetipa". Journal of the Polynesian Society. 93 (4): 345–398.
- ^ The Trial of the Cannibal Dog: The Remarkable Story of Captain Cook's Encounters in the South Seas, by Anne Salmond, Chapter 7, "Travellers from Hawaiki".
- from the original on 28 January 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
- ^ (1) Williams, H. W. (1971). A dictionary of the Maori language (7th ed.). Wellington, New Zealand: Government Printer. (2) Ngata, H. M. (1993). English-Maori dictionary. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media. (3) Ryan, P. (1997). The Reed dictionary of modern Maori (2nd ed.). Auckland, New Zealand: Reed. (4) Biggs, B. (1981). Complete English–Maori dictionary. Auckland, New Zealand: Oxford University Press.
- ^ a b Bell, Avril (1996) '"We're Just New Zealanders": Pakeha Identity Politics' in P. Spoonley et al. (eds) Nga Patai: Racism and Ethnic Relations in Aotearoa/New Zealand. Palmerston North: Dunmore, pp144-158, 280–281 Bell, Avril (January 1996). "We're just New Zealanders': Pakeha identity politics". Nga Patai: Racism and Ethnic Relations in Aotearoa. Archived from the original on 6 May 2018. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
- ^ Misa, Tapu (8 March 2006). "Ethnic Census status tells the whole truth". New Zealand Herald. APN Holdings. Archived from the original on 28 June 2012. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
- ^ 'Pakeha' Identity Archived 31 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Whitiwhiti Korero, issue 5, March 2006. Human Rights Commission.
- ISBN 978-0-478-31583-7. Accessed 27 April 2009.
- ^ "Census poses a $38m question". New Zealand Herald. APN Holdings. 10 March 2001. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
- ISBN 9780864730961. Archivedfrom the original on 17 September 2017.
- ^ These include Garth George, a conservative Pākehā columnist [1], Rawiri Taonui, a somewhat radical Maori academic [2], and John Armstrong, a mainstream political columnist.[3]
- ^ Barton, Chris (18 June 2005). "It's history, but not as we know it (interview with Judith Binney)". New Zealand Herald. APN Holdings. Archived from the original on 23 February 2013. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
- ^ King, M. (1985), Being Pakeha: An encounter with New Zealand and the Maori Renaissance, Auckland: Hodder and Stoughton.
- ^ "NATIONHOOD – Don Brash Speech Orewa Rotary Club | Scoop News". Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2017. 15 September 2017
- ^ "Read Hansard Reports". www.parliament.nz. Archived from the original on 16 September 2017. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- ^ "Read Hansard Reports". www.parliament.nz. Archived from the original on 1 November 2017. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- ^ "Flavell: Address at the Maori Party 10th Anniversary – Scoop News". www.scoop.co.nz. Archived from the original on 16 September 2017. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
Further reading
- Hoani Nahe, "The Origins of the Words 'Pakeha' and 'Kaipuke'", Journal of the Polynesian Society, vol. 3, December 1894
External links
- The dictionary definition of 'pākehā' at Wiktionary