Poia Mai Taku Poi - A History of Poi

M?ori performing arts is a dynamic part of the M?oriculture which has effectively ensured theinter-generational transmission of M?ori knowledgefor thousands of years. Performing arts was crucialamongst a group of people with no written form oftheir language. Traditionally M?ori performing artswas not a performance but a ritual. It was anintegral part ofeveryday life and was used in all aspects oftraditional M?ori society. Upon European arrival toNew Zealand M?ori social life and customs wereobserved and documented in a written form. M?orisocial life and material culture changedremarkably and these early written sources provide aglimpse of how traditional M?ori society operated.The aim of this research is to investigate earlysources on M?ori performing arts in order toconstruct a written history of poi - one of the leastresearched but most widely practiced areas of M?oriperforming arts. It is hoped that this study on poiwill encourage others to engage in historicalresearch and unearth other secrets of M?oriperforming arts that have been hidden amongst thepages of early writings.