Takatapui
Encyclopedia
Takatāpui is the Māori word meaning a devoted partner
of the same sex
. In modern terminology, a person that identifies as takatāpui is a Māori individual that is queer
, in other words gay
, lesbian
, bisexual
, transgender
or transsexual (LGBT
). Takatāpui is used nowadays in response to Western construction of "sexuality
, gender
, and corresponding identity expressions." (Gender identity
and sexual identity
]). The term encompasses not only aspects of sexuality but one's cultural identity. As a result of heterosexism
from internalized colonialism
within Māori communities" and colonialism in its racist forms in non-Māori LGBT communities, indigenous identities which are "living entities that are fluid, transformative, collective, deeply personal and, at times, intentionally ambiguous" have also been subject to homonormative and tribal normativity. Takatāpui incorporates both a sense of indigenous identity and communicates sexual orientation, it has become an umbrella term to build solidarity among sexuality and gender minorities within Māori communities.
Takatāpui is not a new term, but the application of it is recent. The Dictionary of the Māori Language first compiled by missionary Herbert Williams in 1832 notes the definition as "intimate companion of the same sex". After a long period of disuse there has been a resurgence since the 1980s for a label to describe an individual that is both Māori and non-heterosexual. The word takatāpui was found to have existed in pre-colonial New Zealand
to describe relationships between people of the same sex. The existence of this word defies the conservative Māori argument that homosexuality
did not exist in Māori society prior to the arrival of Europeans.
. The manuscript "gives a clear and systematic account of Māori religious beliefs and beliefs about the origin of many natural phenomena
, the creation of woman, the origin of death, and the fishing up of lands. No other version of this myth is presented in such a connected and systematic way, but all early accounts, from whatever area or tribe, confirm the general validity of the Rangikāheke version. It begins as follows: 'My friends, listen to me. The Māori people stem from only one source, namely the Great-heaven-which-stands-above, and the Earth-which-lies-below. According to Europeans, God made heaven and earth and all things. According to the Māori, Heaven (Rangi) and Earth (Papa) are themselves the source' " (Biggs 1966:448).
One of the great love stories of the Māori world is the legend of Hinemoa and Tutanekai, The story remains popular and is retold in songs, films, cultural theater and dance. Hinemoa defies her family to claim Tutanekai, her "heart's desire" - the lovechild of a chief's wife who was not her social equal. In reading Te Rangikāheke's original version in Māori Laurie found that Tutanekai had a male friend, hoa takatapui and Tutaneka was "nowhere near as impressed by Hinemoa as the romantic Victorian narrative had construed".
but don't identity as gay. The historical usage of the term might not correspond with contemporary understanding of LGBT identities and information on non-heterosexual sexuality and variations from gender role
s as we understand them today have been eradicated by Victorian morality brought by colonizers and Christian missionaries. Though circumstantial there remains evidence that takatāpui lived without discrimination in pre-European times. Some use the terms gay and lesbian as a convenience while others self-identify as takatāpui to resist the colonization of their identities and bodies which would "deny access to important ancestral knowledge". Some use both terms depending on the context. Using takatāpui to self-identify requires acceptance of oneself as Māori as well as LGBT. About one fifth of Māori are young people but the state education system does not explicitly provide for exploring multiple identities. The traditional spiritual and social roles that takatāpui have played in historical Māori societies is not easily incorporated into teaching plans and despite a 2002 mandate from the Ministry of Education there remains a "wholesale absence of culturally appropriate sexuality curriculum in schools for the Māori."
It also figures in Derivatives of takatāpui include takatāpui kaharua for bisexual
, takatāpui wahine for lesbian
and takatāpui wahine ki tāne or takatāpui tāne ki wahine for transmen or transwomen. Takatāpui serves as an umbrella term for all these identities.
Significant other
Significant other is colloquially used as a gender-blind term for a person's partner in an intimate relationship without disclosing or presuming anything about marital status, relationship status, or sexual orientation, as it is vague enough to avoid offense by using a term that an individual...
of the same sex
Sex
In biology, sex is a process of combining and mixing genetic traits, often resulting in the specialization of organisms into a male or female variety . Sexual reproduction involves combining specialized cells to form offspring that inherit traits from both parents...
. In modern terminology, a person that identifies as takatāpui is a Māori individual that is queer
Queer
Queer is an umbrella term for sexual minorities that are not heterosexual, heteronormative, or gender-binary. In the context of Western identity politics the term also acts as a label setting queer-identifying people apart from discourse, ideologies, and lifestyles that typify mainstream LGBT ...
, in other words gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
, lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
, bisexual
Bisexuality
Bisexuality is sexual behavior or an orientation involving physical or romantic attraction to both males and females, especially with regard to men and women. It is one of the three main classifications of sexual orientation, along with a heterosexual and a homosexual orientation, all a part of the...
, transgender
Transgender
Transgender is a general term applied to a variety of individuals, behaviors, and groups involving tendencies to vary from culturally conventional gender roles....
or transsexual (LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
). Takatāpui is used nowadays in response to Western construction of "sexuality
Sexual orientation
Sexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
, gender
Gender
Gender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...
, and corresponding identity expressions." (Gender identity
Gender identity
A gender identity is the way in which an individual self-identifies with a gender category, for example, as being either a man or a woman, or in some cases being neither, which can be distinct from biological sex. Basic gender identity is usually formed by age three and is extremely difficult to...
and sexual identity
Sexual identity
Sexual identity is a term that, like sex, has two distinctively different meanings. One describes an identity roughly based on sexual orientation, the other an identity based on sexual characteristics, which is not socially based but based on biology, a concept related to, but different from,...
]). The term encompasses not only aspects of sexuality but one's cultural identity. As a result of heterosexism
Heterosexism
Heterosexism is a system of attitudes, bias, and discrimination in favor of opposite-sex sexuality and relationships. It can include the presumption that everyone is heterosexual or that opposite-sex attractions and relationships are the only norm and therefore superior...
from internalized colonialism
Colonialism
Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby the metropole claims sovereignty over the colony and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by...
within Māori communities" and colonialism in its racist forms in non-Māori LGBT communities, indigenous identities which are "living entities that are fluid, transformative, collective, deeply personal and, at times, intentionally ambiguous" have also been subject to homonormative and tribal normativity. Takatāpui incorporates both a sense of indigenous identity and communicates sexual orientation, it has become an umbrella term to build solidarity among sexuality and gender minorities within Māori communities.
Takatāpui is not a new term, but the application of it is recent. The Dictionary of the Māori Language first compiled by missionary Herbert Williams in 1832 notes the definition as "intimate companion of the same sex". After a long period of disuse there has been a resurgence since the 1980s for a label to describe an individual that is both Māori and non-heterosexual. The word takatāpui was found to have existed in pre-colonial New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
to describe relationships between people of the same sex. The existence of this word defies the conservative Māori argument that homosexuality
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
did not exist in Māori society prior to the arrival of Europeans.
Hinemoa and Tutanekai
The classic and earliest full account of the origins of gods and the first human beings is contained in a manuscript entitled Nga Tama a Rangi (The Sons of Heaven), written in 1849 by Wī Maihi Te Rangikāheke, of the Ngāti Rangiwewehi tribe of RotoruaRotorua
Rotorua is a city on the southern shores of the lake of the same name, in the Bay of Plenty region of the North Island of New Zealand. The city is the seat of the Rotorua District, a territorial authority encompassing the city and several other nearby towns...
. The manuscript "gives a clear and systematic account of Māori religious beliefs and beliefs about the origin of many natural phenomena
Maori mythology
Māori mythology and Māori traditions are the two major categories into which the legends of the Māori of New Zealand may usefully be divided...
, the creation of woman, the origin of death, and the fishing up of lands. No other version of this myth is presented in such a connected and systematic way, but all early accounts, from whatever area or tribe, confirm the general validity of the Rangikāheke version. It begins as follows: 'My friends, listen to me. The Māori people stem from only one source, namely the Great-heaven-which-stands-above, and the Earth-which-lies-below. According to Europeans, God made heaven and earth and all things. According to the Māori, Heaven (Rangi) and Earth (Papa) are themselves the source' " (Biggs 1966:448).
One of the great love stories of the Māori world is the legend of Hinemoa and Tutanekai, The story remains popular and is retold in songs, films, cultural theater and dance. Hinemoa defies her family to claim Tutanekai, her "heart's desire" - the lovechild of a chief's wife who was not her social equal. In reading Te Rangikāheke's original version in Māori Laurie found that Tutanekai had a male friend, hoa takatapui and Tutaneka was "nowhere near as impressed by Hinemoa as the romantic Victorian narrative had construed".
Uses
One of the first contemporary uses of takatāpui was in a report to the Public Health Commission by Herewini and Sheridan (1994) which used the term to encompass Māori gay men as well as men who have sex with menMen who have sex with men
Men who have sex with men are male persons who engage in sexual activity with members of the same sex, regardless of how they identify themselves; many men choose not to accept sexual identities of homosexual or bisexual...
but don't identity as gay. The historical usage of the term might not correspond with contemporary understanding of LGBT identities and information on non-heterosexual sexuality and variations from gender role
Gender role
Gender roles refer to the set of social and behavioral norms that are considered to be socially appropriate for individuals of a specific sex in the context of a specific culture, which differ widely between cultures and over time...
s as we understand them today have been eradicated by Victorian morality brought by colonizers and Christian missionaries. Though circumstantial there remains evidence that takatāpui lived without discrimination in pre-European times. Some use the terms gay and lesbian as a convenience while others self-identify as takatāpui to resist the colonization of their identities and bodies which would "deny access to important ancestral knowledge". Some use both terms depending on the context. Using takatāpui to self-identify requires acceptance of oneself as Māori as well as LGBT. About one fifth of Māori are young people but the state education system does not explicitly provide for exploring multiple identities. The traditional spiritual and social roles that takatāpui have played in historical Māori societies is not easily incorporated into teaching plans and despite a 2002 mandate from the Ministry of Education there remains a "wholesale absence of culturally appropriate sexuality curriculum in schools for the Māori."
It also figures in Derivatives of takatāpui include takatāpui kaharua for bisexual
Bisexuality
Bisexuality is sexual behavior or an orientation involving physical or romantic attraction to both males and females, especially with regard to men and women. It is one of the three main classifications of sexual orientation, along with a heterosexual and a homosexual orientation, all a part of the...
, takatāpui wahine for lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
and takatāpui wahine ki tāne or takatāpui tāne ki wahine for transmen or transwomen. Takatāpui serves as an umbrella term for all these identities.