1-629-907 - The Print Collector/Heritage Images

Hongi Maori salutations, 1908-1909. A Hongi is a traditional greeting in New Zealand. It is done by pressing one's nose to another person at an encounter. It is still used at traditional meetings among members of the Maori people and on major ceremonies. Through the exchange of this physical greeting, you are no longer considered manuhiri (visitor) but rather tangata whenua, one of the people of the land. For the remainder of your stay you are obliged to share in all the duties and responsibilities of the home people. In earlier times, this may have meant bearing arms in times of war, or tending crops of kumara (sweet potato). When Maori greet one another by pressing noses, the tradition of sharing the breath of life is considered to have come directly from the gods. From Penrose's Pictorial Annual 1908-1909, An Illustrated Review of the Graphic Arts, volume 14, edited by William Gamble and published by AW Penrose (London, 1908-1909).