Who are New Zealand Māori?
Māori people are the tangata whenua (indigenous people) of New Zealand. A Māori is a person who identifies with or feels they belong to the Māori ethnic group.
In New Zealand, ethnicity is self-defined and people can and do belong to more than one ethnic group. Māori is one of the five top level categories currently used in New Zealand to identify ethnicity (European, Māori, Pacific peoples, Asian and Other).
What are Māori population statistics used for?
Statistics about the Māori population are used to count, estimate and project the Māori ethnic group and the dwellings, locations and environments that Māori people live in.
They are also used to describe the characteristics of the Māori population (eg age, sex, educational qualifications), and to compare the Māori ethnic group with the total New Zealand population, and with other ethnic groups. Some data collections also provide data related to people of Māori ancestry.
Resources
Population estimates
Māori population estimates
Estimates of the latest number of New Zealand Māori residents and their distribution by age, sex and geographical area. Published by Statistics New Zealand.
Population projections
National Māori population projections
Information on the current and future Māori population in New Zealand.
Subnational Māori population projections
Information on the current and future distribution of the Māori population within New Zealand. Published by Statistics New Zealand.
Population counts (census)
Information on the Māori population in the Census of Population and Dwellings has been published for every census since 1858. The publications may be consulted at the offices of Statistics New Zealand or at major public and university libraries. Information from the 1996 and 2001 censuses is available electronically (see links below).
2001 Census of Population and Dwellings: Māori
Provides tables on Māori from the 2001 Census of Population and Dwellings.
1996 Census of Population and Dwellings: Māori
Provides tables on Māori from the 1996 Census of Population and Dwellings.
Māori in New Zealand
Te Puni Kōkiri
Website of Te Puni Kōkiri/Ministry of Māori Development contains information on the ministry's programmes and activities.
Māori in New Zealand
The Māori in New Zealand section of Te Puni Kōkiri's website provides statistical information on various characteristics of the Māori population in New Zealand. Available in a range of formats, including fact sheets, trend sheets and other reports.
Demographic and population analysis
Te Puni Kōkiri publications
The publications section of the Te Puni Kōkiri website contains a number of reports and publications relevant to demographic and population analysis. These include Te Māori i Nga Rohe: Māori Regional Diversity 2001, Māori Economic Development Te Ohanga Whanaketanga Māori 2003, reports on the Māori language, and various fact sheets and trend sheets.
The Dynamics of Ethnicity Reporting
A 2003 discussion paper on people of Māori ethnicity by Tahu Kukutai.
Time use
Time use
Information on Māori from the 1999 Time Use Survey produced by Statistics New Zealand.
Language
Survey on the Health of the Māori Language
Report on the Statistics New Zealand survey on the health of the Māori language (te reo Māori) done on behalf of Te Puni Kōkiri in 2001.
Family
Guardianship, Custody and Access: Maori Perspectives and Experiences
Ministry of Justice research report, 2002.
Domestic violence
Evaluation of Programmes for Maori Adult Protected Persons under the Domestic Violence Act 1995
Ministry of Justice research report, 2002.
Women
Fertility of Women of Māori Ethnicity
Information on fertility of Māori women based on the 1996 Census of Population and Dwellings.
References
Ballara A (1998). Iwi: The Dynamics of Māori Tribal Organisation from c 1769 to c 1945, Victoria University Press, Wellington.
Belich J (2002). Making Peoples: A History of the New Zealanders from Polynesian Settlement to the end of the Nineteenth Century, University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu.
Kukutai T (2001). Māori Identity and 'Political Arithmetick': The dynamics of reporting ethnicity. MA thesis, University of Waikato, Hamilton.
Pool I (1977). The Māori Population of New Zealand 1769-1971, Auckland University Press/Oxford University Press, Auckland.
Pool I (1991). Te Iwi Māori, Auckland University Press, Auckland.
Experts
For further information email the Demography Division of Statistics New Zealand or write to:
Robert Didham
Demography Division
Statistics New Zealand
Dollan House
401 Madras Street
Private Bag 4741
Christchurch.
For enquiries about statistics in Te Puni Kōkiri's publications.