Waikato Tainui


Waikato Tainui, Waikato or Tainui is a group of Māori people iwi based in Waikato Region, in the western central region of New Zealand's North Island. It is part of the larger Tainui confederation of Polynesian settlers who arrived to New Zealand on the Tainui waka. The tribe is named after the Waikato River, which plays a large part in its history and culture.
Pōtatau Te Wherowhero, the first Māori king, was a member of the Waikato sub-tribe of Ngāti Mahuta, and his descendants have succeeded him. The king movement is based at Turangawaewae marae in Ngāruawāhia.
The Waikato-Tainui iwi comprises 33 hapu and 65 marae. There are over 52,000 tribal members who affiliate to Waikato-Tainui. Hamilton City is now the tribe's largest population centre, but Ngāruawāhia remains the tribe's historical centre and modern capital. In the 2006 census, 33,429 people in New Zealand indicated they were affiliated with Waikato, including those affiliated with more than one tribe.
This is how the iwi describes its origins and tribal area:

Government

Waikato-Tainui's governing parliamentary body is Te Kauhanganui, a governing body of 204 tribal members – 3 members from each of the 68 marae. The marae are spread over a large area from Te Kuiti and Cambridge in the south to Auckland in the north.
The executive board is Te Arataura, which has 10 representatives elected from Te Kauhanganui and an 11th member appointed by the Māori king. The Waikato-Tainui tribal administration is the Waikato Raupatu Trustee Company Ltd, which replaced the Tainui Māori Trust Board, and is situated at Hopuhopu, Ngāruawāhia.
The Waikato iwi has been using the name Tainui to describe itself for some time, through the establishment of the Tainui Māori Trust Board by the Waikato-Maniapoto Maori Claims Settlement Act 1946, with many people now referring to the Waikato iwi as "Tainui" or "Waikato-Tainui".
There have traditionally been strong links between Tainui and the University of Waikato, which has strengths in Māori language and modern local history. The university also holds documents and objects related to the tribe.

Hapū and marae

Waikato Tainui is made up of several iwi and hapū.
Each tribal group has marae, which usually includes a wharenui''.

Ngāti Mahuta

The iwi of Ngāti Mahuta is associated with 19 marae:
The iwi of Ngāti Te Wehi is associated with 9 marae:
The hapū of Ngāti Tai, Ngāti Kuiaarangi and Ngāti Whāwhākia are associated with 8 marae:
The hapū of Tainui is associated with 7 marae:
The hapū of Ngāti Tāhinga is associated with 6 marae:
The hapū of Ngāti Apakura is associated with 6 marae:
The hāpu of Ngāti Tiipa and Ngāti Āmaru are associated with 6 marae:
The hāpu of Ngāti Hauā is associated with 5 marae:
The hapū of Ngāti Korokī and Ngāti Raukawa are associated with 5 marae:
The hapū of Ngāti Māhanga and Ngāti Tamainupo are associated with 4 marae:
The hapū of Ngāi Tai, Ngāti Koheriki, and Ngāti Tamaoho are associated with 4 marae:
The hapū of Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Naho and Ngāti Pou are associated with 4 marae:
The hapū of Ngāti Te Ata and Ngāti Paretaua are associated with 4 marae:
The hapū of Ngāti Te Ata and Ngāti Paretaua are associated with 4 marae:
The hapū of Ngāti Makirangi has no marae of its own, but is associated with 4 marae:
The hapū of Ngāti Wairere is associated with 2 marae: