Iritana Tāwhiwhirangi

Dame Iritana Te Rangi Tāwhiwhirangi DNZM MBE (born 21 March 1929) is a New Zealand advocate of Māori language education and the Kōhanga Reo movement.

Tāwhiwhirangi in 2010

Biography

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Born in Hicks Bay on 21 March 1929,[1][2][3] Tāwhiwhirangi or auntie E is of Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāpuhi, Canadian and English descent. She was educated at Hukarere Girls' School from 1943 to 1946, and then Wellington Teachers' College from 1947 to 1948.[1]

She is a life member of the Māori Women's Welfare League and Toitū Kaupapa Māori Mātauranga – Māori Education Trust. She is on the Board of Trustees of the Te Kōhanga Reo National Trust.[4]

Honours and awards

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Tāwhiwhirangi was awarded the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal,[1] and in the 1992 New Year Honours, she was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire, in recognition of her role as general manager of Te Kōhanga Reo National Trust.[5] In 1993, she received the New Zealand Suffrage Centennial Medal.[1]

In the 2001 New Year Honours, Tawhiwhirangi was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to Māori education,[6] and in the 2009 Queen's Birthday Honours she was promoted to Dame Companion, also for services to Māori education.[7]

She was a finalist for the 2014 New Zealander of the Year Awards.[8]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Taylor, Alister, ed. (2001). "New Zealand Who's Who Aotearoa 2001". New Zealand Who's Who, Aotearoa. Auckland: Alister Taylor Publishers. ISSN 1172-9813.
  2. ^ "Kōkiri and Kōkiritia". Tpk.govt.nz. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
  3. ^ "New Maori dame helped thousands learn te reo". Stuff.co.nz. 1 May 2010. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
  4. ^ "Te Kōhanga Reo National Trust". Kohanga.ac.nz. 15 March 2017. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
  5. ^ "No. 52768". The London Gazette (2nd supplement). 31 December 1991. p. 30.
  6. ^ "New Year honours list 2001". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 30 December 2000. Retrieved 17 August 2019.
  7. ^ Queen's Birthday Honours List 2009, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet; retrieved 18 November 2020.
  8. ^ Laird, Lindy (28 February 2014). "Kaitaia health champion wins again". The Northern Advocate. Retrieved 28 February 2014.
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