Today, the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography releases te reo Māori translations of 15 entries originally published in English. The 15 subjects are all prominent Māori figures.

Dictionary of New Zealand Biography (Te Ara)

Finalising te reo translations is a welcome development says Neill Atkinson, Chief Historian at Manatū Taonga Ministry for Culture and Heritage. “It has taken some time to get to this point, but we’ve taken due care to ensure the translations accurately reflect the mahi and significant impact of these prominent New Zealanders.

“The new translations cover the Māori entries published since the Dictionary became a purely digital product, and were made by Sean Ellison, Te Haumihiata Mason, Hēni Jacob, Charisma Rangipunga and Simon Petricevich, taking into account differing iwi dialects and orthographic conventions”.  

“The rich contribution of our translators is now acknowledged on each biography page alongside the names of the entries’ authors”, says Mr Atkinson.

As a result of this project, the DNZB’s 500 biographies on Māori subjects are all now available in te reo Māori, which – together with the te reo sections of Te Ara – forms the largest te reo Māori publishing programme ever undertaken in New Zealand.

Producing content related to Māori in both te reo Māori and English has been central to the Dictionary project since the first print volume was published 30 years ago this year. The DNZB is the foremost reference work on the lives of people who shaped this country’s history and culture from the seventeenth to the twenty-first centuries. It includes more than 3000 biographies, written by specialists and produced to a high standard by a team of researchers and editors.

When the Dictionary was first released online in 2001, users could toggle between te reo Māori and English versions of the entries for the first time. The Dictionary became part of Te Ara the Encyclopedia of New Zealand in 2010. 

A new tranche of Dictionary of New Zealand Biography entries is expected in May 2021.

The newly translated entries

Biggs, Bruce Grandison; Ngāti Maniapoto; ethnographer, linguist, champion of te reo Māori; written by Andrew Pawley, translated into te reo Māori by Te Haumihiata Mason

Harris, Witarina Te Miriarangi; Ngāti Whakaue; film actor, te ao Māori advocate; written by Emma Jean Kelly, translated into te reo Māori by Te Haumihiata Mason

Hayward, Ramai Rongomaitara; Ngāti Kahungunu, photographer, actor, director; written by Deborah Shepard, translated into te reo Māori by Te Haumihiata Mason

Hotere, Hone Papita Raukura (Ralph); Te Aupōuri; artist; written by Megan Tamati-Quennell, translated into te reo Māori by Te Haumihiata Mason

Morrison, Howard Leslie; Te Arawa; singer, entertainer, community leader; written by Chris Bourke, translated into te reo Māori by Te Haumihiata Mason

Rata, Matiu Waitai; Ngāti Kurī, Te Aupōuri, Ngāti Whātua; politician, union leader; written by Tiopira McDowell, translated into te reo Māori by Te Haumihiata Mason

Rehu-Murchie, Erihapeti; Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Māmoe, Waitaha, Ngāti Raukawa; researcher, health, human rights and environmental campaigner; written by Kirsty Dunn, translated into te reo Māori by Charisma Rangipunga

Rickard, Tuaiwa Hautai Kereopa (Eva); Ngāti Koata, Ngāti Toa, Tainui, Taranaki woman of mana, community leader; written by Angeline Greensill and Hineitimoana Greensill, translated into te reo Māori by Sean Ellison

Rupe, Carmen Tione; Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Hauā, Ngāti Heke-a-Wai; drag queen entertainer, sex worker, entrepreneur, LGBTIQ+ icon; written by Lynette Townsend, translated into te reo Māori by Te Haumihiata Mason

Sturm, Jacqueline Cecilia; Taranaki, Te Whakatōhea; short-story writer and poet; written by Paul Millar, translated into te reo Māori by Te Haumihiata Mason

Szászy, Miraka; Ngāti Kurī, Te Aupōuri, Te Rarawa woman of mana, educator, leader; written by Melissa Matutina Williams, translated into te reo Māori by Simon Petricevich and Te Haumihiata Mason

Te Atairangikaahu Korokī Te Rata Mahuta Tāwhiao Pōtatau Te Wherowhero; Ngāti Mahuta, Ngāti Apakura, Ngāti Maniapoto; Māori queen; written by Rahui Papa and Paul Meredith, translated into te reo Māori by Te Haumihiata Mason

Tirikatene-Sullivan, Tini Whetu Marama; Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Kahungunu; politician, fashion icon, wahine toa; written by Helen Brown, translated into te reo Māori by Charisma Rangipunga and Hēni Jacob

Tūwhare, Hone; Ngāpuhi; boilermaker, poet; written by Janet Hunt, translated into te reo Māori by Te Haumihiata Mason

Wark, Elizabeth Cecilia (Betty); Ngāpuhi; community worker; written by Helene Connor, translated into te reo Māori by Te Haumihiata Mason.