New Zealand's founding document, an agreement in Maori and English, signed beginning 6 February 1840 at Waitangi between the British Crown and more than 500 Maori rangatira (chiefs), on the basis of which the Crown claimed sovereignty over New Zealand. The Maori and English texts differ in important respects, most significantly over what authority the chiefs ceded, kawanatanga or governorship in the Maori text against full sovereignty in the English text, and this difference remains a live and debated issue in New Zealand law and politics. A specialist tribunal, the Waitangi Tribunal, exists specifically to hear claims arising from the Treaty.
Facts
Key ProvisionSigned beginning 6 February 1840 between representatives of the British Crown and more than 500 Maori chiefs across New Zealand, the treaty exists in two texts, an English version and a Maori version, Te Tiriti o Waitangi, that diverge on points central to what was actually promised. The English text has the chiefs cede sovereignty to the Crown in Article 1; the Maori text uses kawanatanga, a narrower term closer to governance or governorship, not the fuller sovereignty the English word carries. Article 2 guarantees Maori tino rangatiratanga, full chieftainship or self-determination, over their lands, forests, fisheries and other taonga (treasures), alongside a Crown right of preemption over land sales that the English text calls exclusive and the Maori text renders less absolutely. This English-Maori divergence is not a settled historical footnote but a live, documented dispute in New Zealand law and politics, addressed in part through the Waitangi Tribunal, established in 1975 to investigate claims that the Crown breached the treaty's principles. 1 Classification
Document Type Original Language Original Language Connections
Influenced
Many read Article 2's guarantee of tino rangatiratanga as a guarantee of Maori self-determination over their own affairs, though the term's exact scope remains debated.
Source The Treaty in Brief (NZHistory)
Sources
1. The Treaty in Brief (NZHistory)
New Zealand Ministry for Culture and HeritageDocument type, description
New Zealand's founding document, an agreement in Maori and English, signed beginning 6 February 1840 at Waitangi between the British Crown and more than 500 Maori rangatira (chiefs), on the basis of which the Crown claimed sovereignty over New Zealand.
- Influenced: Self-Determination
View the Source 2. Treaty of Waitangi (Wikipedia)
In Group: Treaties and Agreements Before 1900, Lead paragraphQuote, In Group: Treaties and Agreements Before 1900, Lead paragraph
It was first signed on 6 February 1840 by Captain William Hobson as consul for the Crown and by Māori chiefs (rangatira) from the North Island of New Zealand.
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