The term Maori is used to describe the native people of New Zealand along with their culture and language; the Maori have lived in New Zealand for a period of at least a thousand years and are considered to be the descendants of Polynesian people who migrated from lands lying to the north and north east and settled in New Zealand in the 8th or 9th century developing a distinct culture which subsequently became known as Maori.

The word Maori in the indigenous language means ‘normal’ or ‘ordinary’ and according to ancient tradition connotes the mortal nature of man as against that of God; Europeans arrived in the New Zealand from the 18th century onwards and referred to the local people as aborigines or natives while the word Maori was coined by the indigenous people to distinguish themselves from Europeans who were known as ‘Pakeha’. The Maori culture after contact with the external world has adapted itself in several ways and its ethos remains as strong as ever in modern times.