Witi Ihimaera

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Witi Ihimaera is a New Zealand writer born on February 7, 1944, in Gisborne. He grew up in the small town of Waituhi and decided to become a writer as a teenager because he felt Māori people were ignored in literature. He made history as the first Māori author to publish a collection of short stories, Pounamu, Pounamu (1972), and the first Māori writer to publish a novel, Tangi (1973). His 1974 novel Whanau was another early success.

Ihimaera took a ten-year break from writing to edit a large anthology of Māori writing in English, Into the World of Light (1982). He returned to fiction in the late 1980s and began producing a wide range of novels, plays, short stories, and opera librettos. His work often explores contemporary Māori life, legends, history, and the effects of colonization. He has said Māori culture is a treasure trove of inspiration for him.

His best-known work is The Whale Rider (1987), which was read worldwide and later made into the acclaimed 2002 film Whale Rider. Nights in the Gardens of Spain (1996) is a semi-autobiographical novel about a man coming to terms with his homosexuality. Bulibasha: King of the Gypsies (1994) won major awards and was adapted into the 2016 film Mahana. He also wrote The Parihaka Woman (2011) and The Trowenna Sea (2009), and published memoirs including Māori Boy (2014) and Native Son (2019).

Ihimaera served as a diplomat for New Zealand and taught at the University of Auckland, where he was Professor of English and Distinguished Creative Fellow in Māori Literature until 2010. He has received many honors, such as the Queen’s Service Medal (1986), the Distinguished Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (2004), and the Prime Minister’s Award for Literary Achievement (2017). In 2017 he was named a Chevalier of France’s Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, and in 2024 he was elected a Royal Society of Literature International Writer.

His career has not been without controversy. He faced plagiarism allegations related to The Matriarch (1986) and The Trowenna Sea (2009); he apologized for the issues, and while The Trowenna Sea was recalled, an investigation found no deliberate misconduct. The events sparked debate about sourcing and quotation in his work.

Witi Ihimaera remains a leading figure in New Zealand and world literature, celebrated for giving voice to Māori stories and perspectives across many genres.