Awardee: Madi Williams (Ngāti Kuia, Ngāti Koata, Ngāti Apa ki te Rā Tō, Rangitāne o Wairau), University of Canterbury
The Awardee will undertake the Whakaaweawe Impact and Transformation Grant titled Ngāti Kuia: He Pūtake, Hei Pakiaka Ora | A History. The first book focused on the history and identity of Ngāti Kuia.
Ngāti Kuia is an iwi from Te Tauihu-o-Te-Waka-a-Māui. Ngāti Kuia’s history has been left out or misrepresented in existing works. This book is an intentional, necessary writing of Ngāti Kuia into the historical narratives. The aim of the book is to illuminate Ngāti Kuia perspectives about their past and provide these perspectives with a platform in the historical narratives in an accessible way for Ngāti Kuia whānau, the general reader, as well as academics, both Māori and non-Māori.
The book emerged from the recipient’s doctoral thesis, which initially set out to explore Māori and European ways of engaging with the past. Through the research process, it became clear that the tohu were pointing toward Ngāti Kuia and their specific history. The thesis and its adaptation into this book became a personal map home for the author, with the hope that it will also serve as a map home for others. This grant will support the final touches on the manuscript, including the creation of an index, and will enable a book launch in the Ngāti Kuia rohe to celebrate the sharing of this history with whānau and the wider community