Kīngi Īhaka | |
Honorific-Suffix: | MBE JP |
Religion: | Anglican Church |
Other Names: | Matu Īhaka |
Birth Date: | 18 October 1921 |
Birth Place: | Te Kao, New Zealand |
Resting Place: | Purewa Cemetery |
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Sir Kīngi Matutaera Īhaka (18 October 1921 – 1 January 1993), known to his family as Matu Īhaka, was a New Zealand clerk, interpreter, Anglican priest, broadcaster and Māori Language Commissioner. Of Māori descent, he identified with the Te Aupōuri iwi. He was born in Te Kao, Northland, New Zealand, on 18 October 1921, the 13th of 14 children.
Īhaka was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire in the 1970 Queen's Birthday Honours, for services to the Anglican Māori Church. In the 1989 New Year Honours, he was made a Knight Bachelor, for services to the Māori people. In 1990, he was awarded the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal.[1] He was buried at Purewa Cemetery in the Auckland suburb of Meadowbank.[2]