Pākehā

Pākehā is a term generally used to describe New Zealanders of Anglo/European extraction, but to many Māori it also means non-Māori. The word first came into use soon after the arrival of European settlers to New Zealand in the late 18th century.

In the Māori language, the pluralised form of Pākehā is Pākehā, as pronouns or definite articles in Māori indicate pluralisation. When the word was first adopted into English, the usual English pluralisation rules applied to give the plural Pakehas. However the Māori plural form Pākehā is now increasingly being used in New Zealand English.

Origins of the word

The exact origins of the word Pākehā are unknown, although the most likely sources are from the words pākehakeha (who among certain Māori iwi are a mythical fishmen) and/or pakepakehā (mythical human-like creatures, with fair skin and hair) [1].

Many major words in Māori are descriptive sentences made of smaller words. Breaking down the word Pākehā into separate words also suggests a compound meaning in Māori. The three words are given the following meanings by the Concise Māori Dictionary (Reed/Kāretu, 1990):

Pā - a village (fortified), stockade, block up, to blow, form of address to male superior, be heard, hit, be struct, obstruct, touch, affect.
Kē - afterwards, before, already, different, strange, other, otherwise, step- (as in tungāne kē: step-brother)
Hā - breath, flavour, taste, so, then, what!

Popular misconceptions

There are several dubious meanings given to the word Pākehā, including:

The claim it is a Māori transliteration of "bugger ya"
That it derives from poaka the Māori word for (pig), and keha, one of the Māori words for (flea), and therefore expresses derogatory implications. There is little etymological or linguistic support for this notion. The more common Māori word for flea is puruhi and the word poaka is from the term porker as these animals were introduced by the British settlers.
That it means white pig in Māori. Poaka is a transliteration of "porker", as mentioned, but common Māori words for white include mā and tea, making this a very unlikely translation or origin.

Meaning

The Concise Māori Dictionary (Reed/Kāretu, 1990) defines Pākehā as "foreign, foreigner (usually applied to white person)", while the English – Māori : Māori – English Dictionary (Briggs, 1990) defines Pākehā as "white (person)".

Common alternative designations for Pākehā in New Zealand include "New Zealand Europeans" or "European New Zealanders" and sometimes "Caucasian New Zealanders" or "White New Zealanders". The term 'white' can have offensive connotations and seldom occurs. Some early European settlers who lived among the Māori became known as Pākehā Māori.

The word mostly applies more narrowly to just New Zealanders of European (primarily British and Irish) descent. Sometimes it applies more widely to include non-Māori other than those of European descent. A trend exists to apply the term only to New Zealand-born persons of predominantly European descent, but acceptance of this notion remains still far from universal.

Acceptance

European New Zealanders vary in their attitude toward the word "Pākehā" as applied to themselves. Some embrace it wholeheartedly as a sign of their New Zealandness, in contrast to the Europeaness of their forebears. Others object to the word, claiming it to be derogatory or to carry implications of being an outsider, though not to the same extent as the word gaijin in Japan. Those who ignore ethnic distinctions prefer to identify all New Zealand citizens only as New Zealanders.

Historian Judith Binney calls herself a Pākehā and says, "I think it is the most simple and practical term. It is a name given to us by Māori. It has no pejorative associations like people think it does—it's a descriptive term. I think it's nice to have a name the people who live here gave you, because that's what I am".

Cultural identity

Many Pākehā do not readily identify a Pākehā culture. While Māori culture has achieved wide recognition, Pākehā culture tends to be indistinguishable from daily New Zealand culture.

Recognised aspects of Pākehā culture often receive the label of "Kiwiana". This includes icons such as the Chesdale Cheese men and the game of rugby. New Zealand culture is an amalgam of cultures, traditionally Pākehā and Māori, but more recently from all over the world.

Michael King, a leading writer on Pākehā identity, discussed the concept in his books Being Pakeha (1985) and Being Pakeha now (1999).

References

Interview with Judith Binney, New Zealand Herald, 18 June 2005.

External links