Rangitunoa Black

Ngāi Tūhoe, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Te Arawa, Ngāi Te Rangi, Rongowhakaata, Te Whānau a Apanui

1954 -

Rangitunoa Black was born at Ruatoki and educated at Tawera School, Ruatoki, Kawerau College and Queen Victoria School. She attended Training College and Waikato University where she graduated with B. Soc.Sc in Māori and Sociology and completed further studies at Victoria graduating with BA(Hons) in Art History in 1984. She wrote all her BA essays in Māori as a political statement. Rangitunoa worked as a reporter for Te Karere for a year and wrote over 100 news items. She compiled a documentary which was broadcast on TVNZ in 1989 on Māori Resources in the Auckland Public system with specific reference to the Grey Collection. In 1988 she began working at the Auckland Public Library and was Senior Māori Librarian and Kaitiaki o Nga Taonga Māori since 1991. She started writing at a very young age and kept an exercise book of short stories. She submitted her first short story to the Te Aranga Māori Women’s Welfare League competition for Māori students writing in Māori and won the essay section which was judged by John Rangihau. She has a lot of unpublished journals but select pieces of her poetry are now being published. The National Library bought the copyright for three of Black’s poems: "Claims", "Oh Woman, Oh Woman", and "Oh Woman, Indigenous Woman" which were subsequently to be broadcast by National Radio under Rangi Chadwick’s direction. Black writes in both Māori and English and the essence of her poetry comes from an oral base. She states: "The imagery in my poems reflects the life I’m living in but also takes with me the treasures of my ancestors - their spirit, their rhythms and their knowledge of the future which they left in Nga Moteatea." She adds, "I will illustrate through a chant and link it to my poetry. I have a new language in English to communicate Māori [ethos]. My audience is Māori." She is a member of Te Ha and Ngā Puna Waihanga.

Biographical sources

  • Interview and correspondence with Rangitunoa Black, 29 Aug. 1992, and 9 Aug 1998.

    Non-fiction

  • "Māori Information Resources: A Survey." Archifacts: Bulletin of the Archives and Records Association of New Zealand (Oct 1990): 49.
  • Co-authored with Theresa Graham, Jane Wild and Chris Szekely. A short article informing the public of a directory of Māori information resources being assembled by the authors as an Auckland Public Library initiative.
  • Te Hikoi Marama: A Directory Of Māori Information Resources. Ed. Rangitunoa Black, Theresa Graham, Chris Szekely, Jane Wild. Auckland, N.Z.: Auckland Public Library, National Library of New Zealand/Te Puna Matauranga o Aotearoa, 1991.
  • This useful directory contains information on Māori material stored at some eighty different institutions in New Zealand and provides details of the various collections and their accessibility. The directory is planned to be annually updated.
  • "Te kuia Tūrehu o te pō me āna mokopuna." Whare kura (2000): 32.
  • Co-authors Anituatua Black.
  • "Puhi wahine." Fiona Pardington : a beautiful hesitation. Aut. Pardington, Fiona, Ed. Kriselle Baker and Aaron Lister. Wellington, N.Z.: Victoria University Press in association with City Gallery Wellington and Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, 2016.

  • Other

  • "Bus Stop Wet Day She’s There, I say." Interview with Cushla Parekowhai. Archifacts: Bulletin of the Archives and Records Association of New Zealand April (1990): 29-35.
  • Black, the Kaiwhakahaere of Māori Services at the Auckland Public Library, discusses with Parekowhai her vision for making libraries Māori-friendly places. She also stresses the need for Māori spaces in libraries where groups of Māori can go together and handle the material which belongs to them. She suggests talking manuscripts and facsimiled copies of 19th century manuscripts for greater accessibility of these documents.

    • Papers/Presentations

  • "Woman Indigenous Woman." No further details.
  • Written under the guidance of Rosemary Seymour in the Women’s Studies Department at Waikato in the 1970s.

    • Performing Arts

  • "Te Wehenga o Nga Manu." Co-authored with Nehu Gage. Te Whare Kura 32 (1978): 18-20.

  • Poetry

  • "Puhi Wahine." Herstory Diary. Hamilton, N.Z.: Women’s Collective, 1983. Rpt. in Te Ao Mārama: Contemporary Māori Writing. Comp. and ed. Witi Ihimaera. Contributing ed. Haare Williams, Irihapeti Ramsden and D. S. Long. Vol. 5: Te Torino: The Spiral. Auckland, N.Z.: Reed, 1996. 86.
  • Quoted by Kathie Irwin in Women’s Studies Journal 6 1.2 (1990). No further details.
  • "Speaking of Ourselves." Spiral 7: A Collection of Lesbian Art and Writing from Aotearoa/New Zealand. Ed. Heather McPherson, Julie King, Marian Evans, Pamela Gerrish Nunn. Wellington, N.Z.: Daphne Brasell, 1992. 168.
  • An imagistic poem addressed to children and particularly daughters of the future.
  • "Contra-Revolutions, but Home Grown." Spiral 7: A Collection of Lesbian Art and Writing from Aotearoa/New Zealand. Ed. Heather McPherson, Julie King, Marian Evans, Pamela Gerrish Nunn. Wellington, N.Z.: Daphne Brasell, 1992. 169.
  • An aggressive poem addressed to a lover.
  • "Words with Sappho." Spiral 7: A Collection of Lesbian Art and Writing from Aotearoa/New Zealand. Ed. Heather McPherson, Julie King, Marian Evans, Pamela Gerrish Nunn. Wellington, N.Z.: Daphne Brasell, 1992. 169-170.
  • A lyrical poem in which the poet identifies with Sappho.
  • "Sovereignty 1." Spiral 7: A Collection of Lesbian Art and Writing from Aotearoa/New Zealand. Ed. Heather McPherson, Julie King, Marian Evans, Pamela Gerrish Nunn. Wellington, N.Z.: Daphne Brasell, 1992. 170.
  • An imagistic and lyrical identification with the environment.
  • "Oh Woman, Oh Woman." Spiral 7: A Collection of Lesbian Art and Writing from Aotearoa/New Zealand. Ed. Heather McPherson, Julie King, Marian Evans, Pamela Gerrish Nunn. Wellington, N.Z.: Daphne Brasell, 1992. 171.
  • A love poem addressed to nature.
  • "Sovereignty 2." Spiral 7: A Collection of Lesbian Art and Writing from Aotearoa/New Zealand. Ed. Heather McPherson, Julie King, Marian Evans, Pamela Gerrish Nunn. Wellington, N.Z.: Daphne Brasell, 1992. 172.
  • A brief poem about personal growth.
  • "Ra." Spiral 7: A Collection of Lesbian Art and Writing from Aotearoa/New Zealand. Ed. Heather McPherson, Julie King, Marian Evans, Pamela Gerrish Nunn. Wellington, N.Z.: Daphne Brasell, 1992. 172-175.
  • A long chant based on a traditional invocation to ra.
  • "Sovereignty 3." Spiral 7: A Collection of Lesbian Art and Writing from Aotearoa/New Zealand. Ed. Heather McPherson, Julie King, Marian Evans, Pamela Gerrish Nunn. Wellington, N.Z.: Daphne Brasell, 1992. 175.
  • A brief poem identifying nature with a young boy. Performed at Ngā Puna Waihanga in 1991.
  • "Face." Spiral 7: A Collection of Lesbian Art and Writing from Aotearoa/New Zealand. Ed. Heather McPherson, Julie King, Marian Evans, Pamela Gerrish Nunn. Wellington, N.Z.: Daphne Brasell, 1992. 176.
  • The poet meditates on her personal identity in the context of the variety of nature.
  • "Noble Women." Te Ao Mārama: Contemporary Māori Writing. Comp. and ed. Witi Ihimaera. Contributing ed. Haare Williams, Irihapeti Ramsden and D. S. Long. Vol. 5: Te Torino: The Spiral. Auckland, N.Z.: Reed, 1996. 86.
  • An English version of "Puhi Wāhine" in which the puhi women are addressed and called upon to chant on the greenstone rock which has its own mana and power.
  • "The Fire Tongue Poem." Te Ao Mårama: Contemporary Måori Writing. Comp. and ed. Witi Ihimaera. Contributing ed. Haare Williams, Irihapeti Ramsden and D. S. Long. Vol. 5: Te Torino: The Spiral. Auckland, N.Z.: Reed, 1996.
  • The speaker tells of fire burning on her tongue.
  • "Claims." Te Ao Mårama: Contemporary Måori Writing. Comp. and ed. Witi Ihimaera. Contributing ed. Haare Williams, Irihapeti Ramsden and D. S. Long. Vol. 5: Te Torino: The Spiral. Auckland, N.Z.: Reed, 1996. 87.
  • The speaker, Papatuānuku, ponders on the ownership of land claims.