Salient. Victoria University Student Newspaper. Vol 35 no. 11. 31 May 1972

The Marae in Post European Times

The Marae in Post European Times

Although the marae as an institution survived the effects of colonisation, it did not do so without the Maori having to make necessary changes. The Maori Councils Act of 1900 set up Maori tribal committees as health committees to being about necessary hygienic improvements in Maori villages. This Act enabled Sir Maui Pomare, the Maori health officer and later Sir Peter Buck to bring about sanitary reform. Uncontaminated "water supplies were established, local regulations on hygiene were set up, sanctioned by the authority of the chiefs and backed by the state". 2 , 3

Meeting houses built after this time had windows incorporated in the back wall to provide through ventilation New meeting houses also had wooden floors installed instead of the traditional earthen floor. By this time also, corrugated iron roofs and timber walls had completely displaced traditional building materials.

Sir Apirana Ngata promoted and revived interest in Maori carving that culminated in the building of many fine, modern meeting houses throughout the country. Ngata invited Princess Te Puea to tour the East Coast with a concert party to raise funds to build the meeting house Mahinarangi at Ngaruawahia. Ngata helped to foster building projects in many Maori communities, and his name is connected with the Treaty memorial house at Waitangi, Tama te Kapua at Rotorua, Wahiao at Whakarewarewa, Tukaki at Te Kaha and the memorial church at Tikitiki.

An important fundamental change in Maori life that was accelerated by the land reforms introduced after the turn of the century was the gradual dispersal of the Maori people from village communities to individual farm units or land incorporations. This meant that the pa was no longer permanently occupied by its owners. Small marae eventually became dominated by particular families and came to be thought of as family marae. Larger marae on the other hand were treated as community marae.

In Waima, studied by Pat Hohepa 4 the two family marae were financed by members of two family units but they were given assistance by other members of the community The community marae on the other hand were built "voluntarily by community members who had also raised the money to purchase building materials by means of dances, basket socials, donations, household tithes and government subsidies". 5

Photo of a marae

Similarly in Kotare, the Northland community studied by Joan Metge 6 the two family marae were built on family land with funds collected from family members.

While family marae stand on private property, community marae stand on land that has usually been declared a Maori reserve by Order-in Council. All members of the hapu or tribe have rights in such a marae. "Each marae reserve is vested in trustees appointed from and by the 'owning' group"

The organisation of community marae in modern times has become formalised with the appointment of trustees and Komiti marae (marae committee) and Komiti wahine (women's committee) to set that the marae is well stocked with cutlery, crockery and bedding, and the buildings are kept in a state of good repair.

This period of marae rebuilding also saw the introduction of the general purpose dining and recreation hall as an important adjunct to the marae, and an extention in the range of activities that occur on the marae. In addition to the traditional uses of the marae for tangihanga and Huihanga, the modern marae is used for club activities, church meetings, card evenings, fund-raising activities, political meetings, cultural activities, welcomes and farewells. In short, the marae is the focal point for community life in rural Maori communities.

Maori design