Pākehā

Pākehā (or Pakeha ) is the term generally employed to indicate the Néo-Zélandais origin Anglo-Saxon or European, but some Māori S employ it to nominate any person non-māori. This term was employed for the first time shortly after the arrival of European colonists in New Zealand at the end of the Eighteenth century.

In language māori, the plural of Pākehā is Pākehā , since the pronouns and the definite articles in māori indicate plural. When this term was adopted in English language, plural became Pākehās , but the form māori is today used more and more in English New Zealander.

Origins of the word

The exact origin of the word Pākehā is unknown, although it probably derives from pakehakeha (of the mythical fishermen for some Iwi māories) and/or from pakepakeha (of the mythical beings humanoïdes, with the pale skin and the pale or red hair)

Frequent errors

One hears sometimes, wrongly, following interpretations about the term Pākehā :

  • It would act of an adaptation māori of the insult " bugger ya" (" will make you voir" in English)

  • the word would come from poaka (Porc in māori) and from keha (chip), with of course of the pejorative insinuations. The linguistic and etymological studies make it possible to strongly doubt this theory. Puruhi is a term more running for a chip, and the word poaka comes from English porker , these animals having been introduced in New Zealand by the British colonists.

Direction

The Concise Māori Dictionary (Reed/Kāretu, 1990) defines thus the term Pākehā : " foreigner (generally a white person) " , while the dictionary anglo-māori/māori-English of Briggs (1990) defines Pākehā as " a person blanche".

Other terms to indicate Pākehā are " European of News-Zélande" , " New Zealander européen" and sometimes " Caucasian New Zealanders " or " White néo-zélandais".

Some of the first European colonists lived within communities māori and were called Pākehā Māori .

Acceptance of the word

The attitudes of Pākehā with respect to this term vary. Some employ it with pride to indicate their New Zealand identity, in opposition to the European identity their ancestors. Others oppose to this employment, and support that term Pākehā is insulting, since it would imply that the white people in New Zealand would be foreigners, even if it is not comparable at the end Japan board Gaijin . Others reject any ethnic differentiation and prefer to employ the " term; Néo-Zélandais" for any inhabitant of New Zealand.

The Historien Judith Binney describes itself like Pākehā and explains: " I think that it is about the simplest term and most practical. It is the name which give us Māori. It does not have pejorative insinuations, in spite of what some think; it is about a descriptive term. I think that it is good to have a name conferred by the inhabitants of this country, because it is what I suis".

The historian Michael King also describes him like Pākehā, in his autobiography Being Pākehā Now (1999).

Cultural identity

Good number of Pākehā do not perceive easily the existence of a culture pākehā. Whereas the culture māori is well recognized, that of Pākehā tends not to be distinguished from the New Zealand culture in the broad sense.

The aspects the best recognizable ones of the culture pākehā are often labels " Kiwiana ". The New Zealand culture includes elements māori, pākehā but also (and more recently) of the whole world.

Michael King discusses this concept in her Being Pākehā Now .

See too

Sources

  • Interview with Judith Binney, New Zealand Herald , 18 June 2005.
  • KING, Michael, Being Pākehā Now , Auckland: Penguin, 1999, ISBN 0-14-028438-9

Bonds

  • Article on this term
  • '' Kiwiana Town ''
  • '' Sarah Henderson' S Guides to Kiwiana ''

Be-X-old: Пакеха

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