Merimeri Penfold (née Roberts, 26 May 1920 – 1 April 2014) was a New Zealand

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

educator. She is thought to have been the first Māori woman to teach

Māori language Māori (; endonym: 'the Māori language', commonly shortened to ) is an Eastern Polynesian languages, Eastern Polynesian language and the language of the Māori people, the indigenous population of mainland New Zealand. The southernmost membe ...

at a New Zealand university.

Biography

Penfold was born at Te Hāpua to Te Mutunga Rapata Hoterene and Maro Heteraka in 1920. She was a member of the

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 ...

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. ...

. She was educated at Queen Victoria School in Auckland and

Auckland Girls' Grammar School Auckland Girls' Grammar School (AGGS) is a New Zealand secondary school for girls located in Newton, New Zealand, Newton, Auckland. Established in 1878 as Auckland Girls' High School, it is one of the oldest secondary institutions in the countr ...

. After qualifying as a teacher, she taught at schools around the North Island before returning to university to complete a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree. For over 30 years Penfold lectured in Māori language at the

University of Auckland The University of Auckland (; Māori: ''Waipapa Taumata Rau'') is a public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. The institution was established in 1883 as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. Initially loc ...

and is believed to have been the first Māori woman to do so at a university in New Zealand. Her translations of nine of Shakespeare's sonnets into Māori were published in the book ''Nga Waiata Aroha a Hekepia'' in 2000. She was also a member of the editorial team for the seventh edition of Williams' ''Dictionary of the Maori Language'', published in 1971. Penfold served on the Māori Education Foundation and the University of Auckland's marae establishment committee. She was an executive member of the Broadcasting Commission between 1989 and 1991 and served as a Human Rights Commissioner from 2002 to 2007. In 1999 Penfold was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Literature by the University of Auckland. In the

2001 Queen's Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 2001 was announced on 16 June 2001 for the United Kingdom (including Northern Ireland), New Zealand (4 June), Australia (11 June), Barbados, Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Sa ...

, she was appointed a

Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit () is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ...

, for services to Māori. She was awarded Te Tohu Aroha mō Ngoi Kumeroa Pewhairangi for her contribution to te reo Māori (the Māori language) in the 2008 Ngā Taonga Toi a Te Waka Toi – Te Waka Toi awards from

Creative New Zealand The Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa (Creative New Zealand) is the national arts development agency of the New Zealand government established in 1963. It invests in artists and arts organisations, offering capability building programmes a ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Penforld, Merimeri 1920 births 2014 deaths Ngāti Kurī people People from the Northland Region University of Auckland alumni Academic staff of the University of Auckland New Zealand Māori academics Companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit New Zealand Māori women academics New Zealand women academics