4856 NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE, No. 194 18 NOVEMBER 2005

place known to them variously as “Te Pātaka” or “Te Whata4 a Irakehu”, “Te Pātaka o
Rākaihautu”5 and “Whangaroa.”6 We heard extensive evidence from rūnaka representatives
about the mahinga kai and wāhi tapu all around the harbour, and their significance to the
resident hapū over time. This evidence was accepted by other submitters, and certainly
satisfied us.

There was, and is, no doubt in our minds that Akaroa Harbour is a place of no ordinary
significance to the Māori people traditionally associated with it. However, the judgment of
Honour Justice Young made it clear that it is necessary for the tribunal to articulate the
special significance to the tangata whenua of the Harbour and the sites within it and along its
shores. We now do so.

The harbour as a source of food

Its special significance arises firstly from the abundance of kaimoana that the people who
lived in its immediate vicinity, and who came also from further afield, were able to obtain
there. While the fishery has been depleted in recent times, formerly it produced a wide range
of edible species upon which Ngāi Tahu people – and especially the resident hapū – relied for
their sustenance.

In his evidence, Wade Wereta-Osborn spoke of how the resident hapū of Akaroa Harbour
established their manawhenua and manamoana there. He showed how these hapū were able
to maintain their ahi kā roa7 in and around Akaroa because of the abundance and ready
availability of food resources within the harbour and its surrounding bays.

The traditional use of Akaroa Harbour as a mahinga kai8 was best captured in the evidence of
Iaean Cranwell. Mr Cranwell’s evidence made these important points:

(a) Archaeological digs around the harbour have indicated that a considerable variety of
species was taken for food. Mr Cranwell listed seven different species of flatfish, and
five different species of shellfish the remains of which have been found in middens at
a number of different sites;

(b) The harbour provides sheltered spots for the taking of kai in virtually any weather or
season. The moods of the harbour were intimately known, as were the places to go to
avoid wind and waves, whatever their direction;

(c) Seasonal events, such as the laying of nets across the harbour to take mako,9 involved
the gathering of people together in an activity that had spiritual and cultural
significance, with special karakia used and practices taught and learned – as well as
meeting the practical need to gather food. These seasonal highlights confirmed the
links between people and with the harbour, and reinforced hapū identity and
belonging;

(d) Ngāi Tahu people practised kaihaukai, a tradition that involved the meeting together
of people from different marae and hapū for the purpose of exchanging food, and
feasting. People would bring to a pre-arranged rendezvous the food or other resource
for which their particular locality was known. For the people of Te Pātaka o

4 ‘Pātaka’ and ‘whata’ are both words connoting a food storehouse, so ‘Te Whata a Irakehu’ means ‘Irakehu’s
pantry’.
5 Thus, ‘Rakaihautu’s pantry’.
6 ‘Whangaroa’ means ‘long harbour’.
7 Literally “fires burning over a long period”, indicating the unbroken occupation and assertion of mana in the
area.
8 A ‘mahinga kai’ was a place where the business of taking resources for food was undertaken.
9 ‘Mako’ is a particular species of shark.