Rawinia Higgins Explained

Rawinia Higgins
Awards:	Pou Aronui award (2020) FRSNZ (2021)
Alma Mater:	University of Otago
Workplaces:	Victoria University of Wellington
Doctoral Students:	Elizabeth Kerekere^[1]
Thesis Title:	He tanga ngutu, he Tuhoetanga te Mana Motuhake o te ta moko wahine
Thesis Url:	https://ourarchive.otago.ac.nz/handle/10523/157
Thesis Year:	2004
Doctoral Advisor:	Michael Reilly

Rawinia Ruth Higgins is a New Zealand academic whose research focuses on Māori language and culture.^[2]

Research

Higgins' Master's thesis at the University of Otago was on the nature of transmission of oral histories,^[3] while her 2004 PhD thesis – – was on the identity politics of female chin tattoos.^{[4] [5]} She was the Head of School at Te Kawa a Māui, School of Maori Studies at Victoria University and was appointed Deputy Vice Chancellor Māori at Victoria University of Wellington in 2016.^{[6] [7]}

Higgins has written Māori material for .^[8] She has been a member of the Waitangi Tribunal^[9] since 2013,^[10] and is on the board of Te Māngai Pāho, the Māori Broadcast Funding Agency.^[11] She is currently Chair of the Māori Language Commission.^[12] Higgins has also served on the following boards, Te Kotahi a Tūhoe and the Tūhoe Fisheries Charitable Trust Board. Higgins provided the translation for the Māori name of the New Zealand Veterinary Association – Maori: Te Pae Kīrehe – which the organization adopted on 29 May 2023.^[13]

Honours and awards

In November 2020, the Royal Society Te Apārangi awarded Higgins the Pou Aronui award for dedicated service to the humanities–aronui over a sustained period.^[14] In March 2021, Higgins was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society Te Apārangi, recognising "her scholarly contributions have made a significant impact in sharing new discourse, insights and understanding of mātauranga Māori and challenging cultural norms".^[15]

Personal life

Higgins is of Tūhoe descent.

Notes and References

1. Part of The Whānau: The Emergence of Takatāpui Identity – He Whāriki Takatāpui . Open Access Te Herenga Waka-Victoria University of Wellington . 2017-01-01 . Doctoral . en . Elizabeth . Kerekere.
2. Web site: Associate Professor Rawinia Higgins | Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga . Maramatanga.co.nz . 2014-05-29 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140529123853/http://www.maramatanga.co.nz/person/associate-professor-rawinia-higgins . 2014-05-29 . dead .
3. Master's thesis.
4. Web site: Dr Rawinia Higgins, University of Otago, New Zealand . Otago.ac.nz . 2014-05-29.
5. Doctoral thesis.
6. Book: Indigenous peoples and the state : international perspectives on the Treaty of Waitangi . 2019 . Mark Hickford, Carwyn Jones . 978-0-367-89544-0 . London . 1124338401.
7. Web site: 2022-01-13 . Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Māori . 2023-01-22 . Victoria University of Wellington . en-NZ.
8. Web site: 1. Understanding tangihanga – Tangihanga – death customs – Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand . Teara.govt.nz . 2013-05-14 . 2014-05-29.
9. Web site: Dr Rawinia Higgins — Waitangi Tribunal . Justice.govt.nz . 2014-05-29.
10. Web site: Minister announces Waitangi Tribunal Appointments . beehive.govt.nz . 2012-12-24 . 2014-05-29.
11. Web site: Te Māngai Pāho | Dr Rawinia Higgins . Tmp.govt.nz . 2014-05-29 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140529123239/http://www.tmp.govt.nz/dr-rawinia-higgins . 2014-05-29 . dead .
12. Web site: Webb-Liddall. Alice. 2019-09-14. Meet Rawinia Higgins, our first woman Māori Language Commissioner. 2021-02-23. The Spinoff.
13. Web site: Introducing Te Pae Kīrehe . New Zealand Veterinary Association . 29 May 2023 . 28 May 2024.
14. Web site: 2020 Research Honours Aotearoa winners celebrated at Government House. 2021-01-19. Royal Society Te Apārangi.
15. Web site: Researchers and scholars elected to Academy. 2021-03-11. Royal Society Te Apārangi.