My popular culture lecture this week had an awesome speaker. Maybe I’m being biased because he’s also a New Zealander… but no, I’m not really. I love that we are being taught about other cultures in Australia other than just Australian cultures. I would love to see more of it, and I’m sure we will! His name is Aramiha Harwood, (in his 30s or 40s I think? I’m bad at guessing ages) and he’s of Maori descent. As soon as I walked into the lecture theatre I noticed he had colouring similar to Maori back in the motherland in my hometown, Wellington, and I was crossing my fingers he was indeed a Kiwi. Every time I meet a New Zealander outside of New Zealand, I get excited. Then they tell me they’re from Auckland and I stop caring. Just kidding! (For anyone who doesn’t get that, imagine it as you’re a Melbournian and then you meet someone from Sydney when you’re overseas. You just get a little bit let down because you love your city more than theirs and they’re the rivalling big-gun cities.)

Aramiha moved over here when he was six years old, I was quite surprised by this, because to me his accent sounded “Kiwi as, bro.” However, he did say he travelled between frequently. He spoke of so many things I recognised, and some which I did not. I really appreciated the way he still seemed so stuck to his roots even when he had not been around the culture as much as he would have if he lived back in Aotearoa (NZ.) Being from there, I totally understand how it’s hard to let go, it’s a hard place not to love… It’s a relatively safe place in the scheme of things, it’s scenery is incredible, the people are creative and friendly, the music scene is pretty groovy and it feels wholesome – to me anyway! I still get homesick from time to time, I miss it like mad when I’m away for too long, I mainly miss my friends, it’s probably harder when you’ve grown up there for a long time. But the thing is, it is so hard to work there. To get a decent job. To have a good income. To afford to live comfortably. This is why I moved, and Aramiha voiced that this is why several Maroi have moved here as well. Several New Zealanders in general have moved here. I meet them all the time and their reasons are the same as mine – more opportunities to work and better pay.

New Zealand is a pretty small country, we don’t have enough going on to allocate everyone a job – plus John Key’s (Prime Minister, National Party – equivalent of Australia’s Liberal Party… and only a slightly less idiotic version of Tony Abbott…) a total knob-end. Excuse my French. He does ridiculous budget-cuts and everything goes pear-shaped for people and their jobs.

Basically, we went over all the identity stuff I grew up with as a child. I’m not Maori, but I could totally relate to a lot of it, I know a small amount of Maori, like Aramiha. I grew up with a lot of Maori influences as well, I was taken to Marae, in English, the meeting house – I liked to call them “the sleepover house,” because it was a big room where everyone got to play games, tell stories and sleep. Although, the memories I have of going, usually, did not involve much sleep because all the elders were very loud snorers… I never packed any earplugs unfortunately. Lesson learnt.

I find that the New Zealanders outside of their country seem to identify with the best are those in the entertainment industries. I guess that’s pretty standard for a small country. They are people who are generally liked on TV and in movies and NZers get a “sense of homeliness” when watching them. Examples of these types are; Stan Walker (X Factor Australia winner,) Cliff Curtis, Keisha Castle-Hughes (now on G.O.T,) Jermaine Clement and Brett Mackenzie (F.O.T.C.) The fictional characters are Jake the Muss from (super amazing film) Once Were Warriors and… that guy Levi from the Nek Minute video…? Wait, he’s not acting. That stuff is for real! I mean, these two faces of NZ aren’t exactly anything to reign over anyone (no offence Levi)… not in an intellectual sense at least. Jake exploits violence and many illegal actions and Levi uses language which is not proper. They show a less privileged side of New Zealand culture. People who do not live in New Zealand tend to float toward the “funny” stuff which NZers produce, like Levi’s Nek Minute video, Bro Town and Flight of the Conchords, which isn’t the only thing NZers should be known for, it’s just easier for others to laugh at than relating to our other politics eg. previous NZ prime minister, Helen Clarke, who had a good heart and ran the country very well in my opinion! Aramiha made it clear that he feels like a lot of what comes out of New Zealand is not all that intellectual, but I suppose that’s what we’re good at, things like having hilarious slang that people can laugh at. We obviously know this is what works for us and several adverts on drug and drink driving (aimed at Maori particularly as it is prevalent in its culture) which have a comical side to them. On the other hand there are shows which totally take the mickey out of our culture. It’s good we can laugh at ourselves.

Drink Driving advert

Drug Driving advert

Movies which I would add to the NZ comedy genre are Boy and What We Do In The Shadows. I found them very entertaining. A more serious movie which I also recommend, is Whale Rider – loved this story as a child and tells a bit of history of New Zealand.

I’d also like to note this awesome movie about Dunedin (city in NZ known as the “student city”) and its run-of-the-mill students finding an abandoned, rent-free house where they discover a little something extra to go along with the deal and in turn leaves them in a very sticky situation. Scarfies by Robert Sarkies. Poor students who like partying, watching sports and having sex will be able to relate for the most part.

TV shows aired here in Australia which make New Zealanders look bad:

• Police Ten 7 – I just think it’s a ridiculous show as it shows really bizarre sides of what the police do in NZ, we simply do not have the same height of crime as other countries so really it’s a bit of a joke and allows Australians to laugh at us as well… this link says it all… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7UX8KASASU
• The GC – makes “Mozzies” look really stupid, to put it bluntly… for that, I am glad it’s been cancelled

A huge New Zealand cultural thing which is definitely recognised in a more worldly sense, is the Haka, popularised sports culture as the All Blacks rugby team start each of their games with this ritual. A traditional Maori war cry/dance which is used to challenge opponents. This is something with traditional worth rather than those funny elements we bring to the table.

The idea that identity is not fixed and bound was brought up. This is because identity is dynamic and fluid, undergoing constant transformation and fragmentation both externally (environments) and internally (personally) and I whole-heartedly agree with that. I’m still a New Zealander, but after living here for three years, I have taken on a whole lot of Australian culture – mainly the slang. I like the people I spend my time with over here, so of course I have adapted to their social mannerisms. Surroundings have a lot to do with how you present yourself. We become different people around others, in a way which reflects how we feel about said person and how we want to come across to others – for instance we may reserve ourselves for respectable reasons. I’d agree that this is symbolic interactionism, it is the role of self and adapting to environments.

Some important names and outlines of what their ideas of identity are:

Michel Foucault – rejects idea of an inner and fixed “essence” that is the person’s identity. He identified the self as being defined by a continuing discourse in a shifting communication of oneself to others.

Jaques Derrida – “deconstruction” and “difference”; an infinite shift of meaning from one person to another; focus on language and its meaning

Anthony Giddens – looks at the correlation between modernity and identity

Some basic history which Aramiha showed us about Maori in NZ:

• The Māori came to Aotearoa (NZ) 1200 yrs ago on waka (traditional hand carved boats)
• They are regarded as the indigenous people of NZ (tangata whenua)
• They were colonised by Europeans (the British) in early 19th century
• The Treaty of Waitangi affords political engagement
• 1960 & 70s massive urbanisation due to economical change (becoming a more privileged country)

Music associated with NZ / Maori culture:

• RnB
• Reggae
• Dub

Fashion associated with NZ / Maori culture:

• Moko (tattoos)
• All Blacks clothing
• Canterbury clothing

Slang words in Maori/NZ culture:

• Skux – cool / hot / popular
• Cuz – friend / cousin
• Blazing / blazed – smoking weed / being stoned
• Nef – friend
• Mean as / sweet as – awesome
• Leeeeegend – speaks for itself…

I could continue for quite some time, but I’ll spare you the eye movement across this page…

These words I am, too, extremely familiar with… mostly. The “nef” thing I think I missed out on. Fortunately…

Although most of these words aren’t used in Australia, several others are used between the countries and, because they’re easily interwoven, this allows for Australians and New Zealanders to bounce off each other and achieve topics of common interest.

Looking at social media language was also interesting. The huge differences between what a poorly educated Maori teen would post to that of one who did have an interest in learning was immense. A lot of cuss and colloquial language had been used. Any ethnic groups of different classes will have their own way of speaking over social media. It also depends on whether they have certain friends or family members on their social media pages.

Words he is still familiar with in the Maori language:

te waka (canoe); te maunga (mountain); te awa (river); te iwi (tribe); te hapu (sub tribe); te marae (the family meeting house); ahau (name); kia ora (hello); taniwha (mythological “water monster”);

As you can see, not a whole lot, so it is clear he is not still embraced into that lifestyle as much as he once was (when he was very young – six years old when he moved.) He can trace back to distant relatives through other relatives keeping records, this is something held of high importance in Maori culture. There aren’t all that many Maori in the world, they’ve got to stick together! Their sense of family (whanau) is a very highly regarded thing. Although seen as a “plastic Maori” to their iwi, rich and successful in comparison to the struggling Maori back home, the lack of involvement in their language or traditions et cetera while occupied elsewhere is not going to cause a segregation of family either, because their bond of culture is so important.

I thought that important words which I would have added were hangi (traditional way of cooking food, particularly roasting foods, in the ground over hot stones) and hongi (greeting where noses are rubbed) – funny that these words are only one letter changed, but mean very different things. These are two very significant things in Maori culture and they, like the Haka, are traditional and date as far back as (debatably) before the 1640s where Europeans discovered New Zealand’s existence.

Some statistics Aramiha showed us were mostly something he was not proud of as a Maori, is that they make up these percentages in NZs culture:

• 15% of New Zealand’s population, and;
• 35% of New Zealand’s unemployment benefit
• 42% of domestic purposes benefit (sole parenting benefit)
• 50% of all government benefits

Maori also make up majority of the people involved in gangs such as the Mongrel Mob and the Killer Bees.

Some statistics relevant to the migration of Maori to Australia:

• In the 2001 ABS Census there were 100,000 Maori in Australia – I imagine this would have risen quite largely since.
• Maori seem to be a migratory group that goes where work is (mining was a big part of the reason, well paid and did not involve much of an education)
• Approx 30,000 (30%) of Maori in Australia are under the age of 15
• Several Maori moved to the Gold Coast, particularly, for the best work opportunities fitting their qualifications
• Many drop out of schools and are, therefore, not well educated so have to work in labouring jobs
• Low education of culture and these days, Te Reo is spoken by less than 5% of Maori in Australia

Unfortunately for myself and all the other New Zealanders overe here, there is a low uptake of citizenship to Australia. My Dad became a citizen of Australia several years after my birth, my younger, half sister is Australian, my Mother lives herea and I’ve been living here for three years and I still cannot get a citizenship unless I am sponsored by a business… Seriously?! So that means no HECS help for me. So I completely understood when Aramiha mentioned the fact that, often, as NZers we do not always feel we belong here in Australia even though we should be friendly neighbouring countries with these aspects.

Aramiha finished by reiterating that he identifies as a Maori-Australian or Mozzie as he prefers. He has taken this on as it is an easy way to describe to another that he appreciates that he is part of both cultures. He holds the fundamental characteristics of being emerged in each side of the Mozzie spectrum.