Maori Settlement Began Around 1350

The ancestors of New Zealand's Maori people arrived from East Polynesia in several waves of canoe voyages between roughly 1320 and 1350, only about 300 years before Europeans made contact. During their isolation, they developed a distinct culture with its own language, mythology, crafts, and performing arts. Dutch explorer Abel Tasman reached New Zealand in 1642, but an apparent misunderstanding led to a clash that killed four of his men and at least one Maori. Tasman left after only two days.

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