Pākehā is a Māori language word for New Zealanders who are "of European descent". They are mostly descended from British and to a lesser extent Irish settlers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, although some Pākehā have Dutch, Scandinavian, German, Yugoslav or other ancestry. Although both "Māori" and "Pākehā" terms are based on predominant ancestry, from 1916 a race or cultural self-identification tool has been used by the New Zealand government in statistical definitions, which has caused some confusion. The word Pākehā is also sometimes used to refer to any person of predominantly European ancestry, including those that are not New Zealanders. Papa'a has a similar meaning in Cook Islands Māori.

The origins of the term are unclear, but it was in use by the late 18th century. In the Māori language, plural nouns of Pākehā may include Ngā Pākehā (definite article) and He Pākehā (indefinite article). When the word was first adopted, the usual plural in English was Pakehas. However New Zealand English speakers are increasingly removing the terminal s and treating Pākehā as a collective noun. Opinions of the term vary amongst those it describes. Some find it highly offensive, others are indifferent, some find it inaccurate and archaic, while some happily use the term and find the main alternatives such as New Zealand European inappropriate.^{[citation needed]}

Te Rangihaeata (died 1855), was a Ngāti Toa chief, nephew of Te Rauparaha. He had a leading part in the Wairau Affray and the Hutt Valley Campaign.

A member of the Ngāti Toa, he was born at Kawhia around 1780. His father Te Rakaherea was a war leader of his people and died at the Battle of Hingakaka fighting the Waikato and Ngāti Maniapoto iwi. His mother was the elder sister of Te Rauparaha and an important ariki in her own right. Te Rangihaeata grew up in Te Rauparaha's shadow and became his trusted ally. Te Rauparaha was the strategist and negotiator while Te Rangihaeata tended to be the active warrior, and they were effective in conquering the various Maori iwi and hapu who lived in the modern Wellington and Nelson/Marlborough regions.

Te Rangihaeata rose to prominence during the period of inter-tribal fighting now known as the Musket Wars. In 1819 while returning from a raid in the Cook Strait area the Ngati Toa clashed with the Ngatiapa around Turakina, near Bulls. During the subsequent fighting Te Rangihaeata captured and then married the chief's daughter. This was the beginning of a long-term association between the two tribes, fortunately, as the Ngati Toa were soon forced to return the area.

Professor Margaret Shirley Mutu is a Ngāti Kahu activist, leader and academic from Auckland, New Zealand. Her iwi are Ngāti Kahu, Te Rarawa and Ngāti Whātua.

She obtained a BSc in Mathematics, a MPhil in Māori Studies and a Ph.D. in Māori Studies specialising in linguistics. She is now Professor of Māori Studies as well as head of department at University of Auckland. She has taught Māori language and Treaty of Waitangi courses since 1986.

Mutu is chairperson of the Ngāti Kahu runanga executive (the legal entity representing the iwi or tribe), their chief negotiator for treaty settlements, and spokesperson to the media.

Mutu has made a number of controversial statements, including "we own it" (referring to the New Zealand foreshore and seabed controversy) and that the immigration of whites is a threat due to their white supremacist attitudes. Many natural born New Zealanders of both Maori and European decent regarded Mutu's comments as racist and unfounded, and some immigrants said they felt unwelcome because of the comments. The Race Relations Conciliator received more than 30 complaints about Mutu's comments and there were calls for her sacking, but University of Auckland defended her right to free speech. Mutu defended her comments by saying Māori are incapable of being racists because they 'are not in a position of power'.

Hone Pani Tamati Waka Nene Harawira is a New Zealand Māori activist and parliamentarian. He was elected to the Parliament of New Zealand for the Māori electorate of Te Tai Tokerau in the 2005 general election as the Māori Party candidate. His resignation caused the Te Tai Tokerau by-election, held on 25 June 2011, which he won with a majority of 1117. As Leader of the Mana Party and Member of Parliament for Te Tai Tokerau, he sits on the front bench in the New Zealand House of Representatives.

Harawira was born to John Puriri Harawira and Titewhai Harawira in Whangarei in 1955. He was raised in West Auckland and attended St Stephen's School, a boarding school for Māori boys, and the University of Auckland. He credits people like Muhammad Ali, Syd Jackson, Nelson Mandela, Maori Marsden, his mother and his wife for teaching him "the need for strength, commitment, wisdom and vision". His mother descends from the Ngāti Hau, Ngāti Wai and Ngāti Hine tribes, his father from Te Aupōuri, Ngāpuhi and Ngāti Whātua, and he is part Pākehā. He married Hilda Halkyard from the Ngāti Haua hapū (subtribe) of Te Rarawa.