A Brief History Of Aotearoa

A Brief History Of Aotearoa

There are alot of important moments in our New Zealand Aotearoa history, such as; Early Polynesian migration, The Treaty of Waitangi and Early European settlement.

The Polynesians discovered Aotearoa in around 1300. They wondered where the birds were going and they followed them. The Polynesians used clouds and other tools like the stars, moon, sun and ocean currents to navigate. Aotearoa was one of the last countries to be discovered because it was at the bottom of the world. Kupe’s wife first yelled “He ao, he ao tea roa!” when she saw our land.

The Treaty was written by William Hobsen and translated by Henry Williams. The Treaty was signed on february 6th 1840. There are nine copies of The Treaty. The English and Maori versions say different things. Hone Heke was the first chief to sign.

Europeans started settling in about 1850. The boat trip would’ve taken six weeks. Some Europeans came for gold and farming. The boat was very rough, lots of people died. Some people like domestic servants got paid to come.

These are important moments in our New Zealand Aotearoa history, they have helped to shape who we are today.