Māori culture is an integral part of life in New Zealand, influencing everything from cuisine to customs, and language. Māori are the tangata whenua, the indigenous people, of New Zealand. They came here more than 1000 years ago from their mythical Polynesian homeland of Hawaiki.

What are some cultural traditions in New Zealand?

To give you a better idea, here are seven traditions that only Kiwis will be able to understand and relate to.Gumboot Day. A chocolate carnival on the worlds steepest street. The haka. The hongi. Powhiri. A hangi. All things Kiwiana.24 Apr 2017

Did the Māori wipe out the Moriori?

That the Moriori were primitive, inferior folk. And that eventually, when Māori arrived on these shores, they massacred, ate, and completely wiped out the Moriori people. The myth was busted decades ago - yet it has persisted for generations. In truth, the Moriori are something of a composite people, Solomon says.