Edward Shortland’s Traditions and Superstitions of the New-Zealanders

Record summary

Edward Shortland’s Traditions and Superstitions of the New-Zealanders, published in 1856, examines Māori origin stories, atua, tapu, dreams, omens, ritual specialists, and customary practices. The title itself reflects the Victorian tendency to classify indigenous sacred systems as superstition, making the work valuable both as documentation and as evidence of colonial knowledge-making. It offers identifiable names and concepts for comparative research into Pacific esotericism and European occult categories. Shortland’s interpretations, translations, and informant relationships must be investigated rather than accepted as direct representations of Māori thought.