Anahera Herbert-Graves (born 12 June 1956) was the Chief Executive Officer of Te Runanga-a-Iwi o Ngāti Kahu from July 2006 to December 2021, the tribal parliament of the New Zealand Māori tribe

Ngāti Kahu Ngāti Kahu is a Māori iwi of Northland, New Zealand. The iwi is one of the six Muriwhenua iwi of the far north of the North Island. Ngāti Kahu take their name from their founding ancestress, Kahutianui, and link their ancestry back to the wa ...

. Born in Auckland, Ānahera is a member of all the ''

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

'' of

Te Hiku o Te Ika Muriwhenua are a group of northern Māori iwi, based in Te Hiku o te Ika, the northernmost part of New Zealand's North Island. It consists of six iwi, Ngāti Kurī, Ngāi Takoto, Te Pātū, Ngāti Kahu, Te Aupōuri and Te Rarawa, with a combined ...

; i.e. (

Te Rarawa Te Rarawa is a Māori iwi of Northland, New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New ...

Ngāti Kurī Ngāti Kurī is a Māori people, Māori iwi from Northland Region, Northland, New Zealand. The iwi is one of the five Muriwhenua iwi of the far north of the North Island. Ngāti Kurī trace their whakapapa (ancestry) back to Pōhurihanga, the ca ...

Te Aupōuri Te Aupōuri is the second northernmost Māori iwi (tribal group), located north of Kaitaia, Northland, New Zealand, a region known as the Te Hiku o te Ika. The iwi is one of the six Muriwhenua iwi of the far north of the North Island. The ...

Ngāi Takoto Ngāi Takoto is a Māori iwi from Northland, New Zealand. The iwi is one of the six Muriwhenua iwi of the far north of the North Island. Ngāi Takoto trace their whakapapa (ancestry) back to Tuwhakatere, and trace their arrival in New Zealand to ...

and Ngāti Kahu) as well as a descendant of Nga Tai Umupuia, a ''

hapū In Māori language, Māori and New Zealand English, a ' ("subtribe", or "clan") functions as "the basic political unit within Māori society". A Māori person can belong to or have links to many hapū. Historically, each hapū had its own chief ...

'' of

Tainui Tainui is a tribal waka (canoe), waka confederation of New Zealand Māori people, Māori iwi. The Tainui confederation comprises four principal related Māori iwi of the central North Island of New Zealand: Hauraki Māori, Hauraki, Ngāti Maniapo ...

). The other ''hapū'' with which Ānahera identifies through her ''

whakapapa Genealogy is a fundamental principle in Māori culture, termed specifically in this context as ''whakapapa'' (, , lit. 'layering'). Reciting one's '' whakapapa'' proclaims one's identity among the Māori, places oneself in a wider context, and ...

'' (genealogy) are
Te Uri o Tai
and Ngati Torotoroa of Te Rarawa, as well a
Patu Kōraha
of Ngāti Kahu. In 1957, Ānahera's parents returned to their birthplace, the north

Hokianga The Hokianga is an area surrounding the Hokianga Harbour, also known as the Hokianga River, a long Estuary, estuarine drowned valley on the west coast in the north of the North Island of New Zealand. The original name, still used by local Mā ...

community of Pawarenga, where they raised their seven children on the family dairy farm. Ānahera was educated at Rotokakahi Māori Maori School, Broadwood Broadwood District High, and

Epsom Girls' Grammar School Epsom Girls Grammar School (often simplified to Epsom Girls, or EGGS) is a state secondary school for girls ranging from years 9 to 13 in Auckland, New Zealand. It has a roll of 2,200 as of 2025, making it one of the largest schools in New Zeala ...

. She has worked in a wide range of public, private and voluntary sector jobs and has held a number of key leadership positions throughout Northland and Auckland. Ānahera contributed to the book ''Ngāti Kahu: Portrait of a Sovereign Nation'' with Margaret Mutu, Lloyd Pōpata, Te Kani Williams, Reremoana Rēnata, JudyAnn Cooze, Zarrah Pineaha, Tania Thomas, and Te Ikanui Kingi-Waiaua, published by

Huia Publishers Huia Publishers is a New Zealand publishing company based in Wellington, established in 1991. Huia publishes material in Māori and English for adults and children, including graphic novels, picture books, chapter books, novels and resources fo ...

in 2018. Anahera now lives in semi-retirement in Pawarenga where she continues to manage the Waitangi Tribunal land claims of Ngati Kahu as well as their communications. She and her family are

Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

, and she has been very critical of the church's handling of sex abuse cases.

References

External links

Ngāti Kahu: Portrait of a Sovereign Nation - Huia PublishersBookshop Authors
{{DEFAULTSORT:Herbert-Graves, Anahera 1956 births Living people Māori politicians People from the Hokianga Ngāti Kahu people Te Rarawa people Te Aupōuri people Ngāi Takoto people New Zealand Māori women New Zealand Latter Day Saints