SEMINAR: Archaeology Seminar Series

Once the orthography for te reo Maori was established in 1820, Maori became exposed to the technology and practice of reading and writing. Certainly the impact of literacy on an indigenous “oral” society can be immense. Missionaries introduced both writing and print culture simultaneously as part of a wider effort to convert Maori to Christianity and European notions of “civilization”. After British annexation of New Zealand in 1840, officials also utilized print to “improve” Maori, and to induce them to accept the rule of law and governmental authority. However, the effect of any tool is generally determined by whom it is wielded. Despite literacy and textual cultures being heavily implicated in colonial practice, Maori were hardly passive consumers of texts. This seminar discusses how Maori engaged in writing manuscripts, in the consumption of European-produced print, as well as in the production of their own printed materials for their own purposes, as a means to both accommodate and resist colonization. This seminar also seeks to place Maori engagement with textual cultures within the wider experiences of indigenous peoples elsewhere during the colonial period.