‘Ko te kōwhao-rau he kupenga, ko te kōwhao-rau he whakapapa, ko te kōwhao-rau he kāinga-rua, he kāinga-toru, ko te kōwhao-rau he whanaunga-maha, na reira, mātou i ora ai, nā te kōwhao-rautanga’

‘The kowhao-rau we speak of can be likened to a net with many holes. Kowhao-rau refers to genealogy and relationships. Kowhao-rau can be likened to a second and third house. Kowhao-rau refers to our many kin relationships. And that is why we have survived, because of all of these separate but related connections’

Dr Patu Hohepa, Waitangi Tribunal, He Whakaputanga me te Tiriti, Wai 1040, p 36; transcript 4.1.1, Te Tii Marae, pp 106, 112;