Waikato: The youngest child and only daughter of Kingi Tuheitia and his wife Makau Ariki Atawhai has been appointed as the new leader of the Kingitanga movement. Kuini (Queen) Nga Wai hono i te po Paki was officially anointed while her father lay in state beside her, evoking memories of his own ascension nearly 18 years ago at Turangawaewae Marae, the heart of the Kingitanga Movement.
Kuini is a direct descendant of the first Maori King, Potatau Te Wherowhero, who was crowned in 1858. As the eighth monarch to lead the movement, her ascension comes just weeks short of the anniversary of her late father’s coronation on August 21, 2006.
Kuini Nga Wai hono i te po Paki becomes only the second woman to hold this position, following her grandmother, Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu, who was the longest-serving Maori monarch from 1966 to 2006. At age 27, she is relatively young for a monarch.
Her education includes attending Te Whare Kura o Rakaumanga in Huntly and earning a Sir Edmund Hillary Scholarship in 2016. She graduated from the University of Waikato with a Bachelor of Arts, followed by a Master of Arts Degree with First Class Honours in 2022.
Born on January 13, 1997, the new monarch was only nine years old when her father ascended to the throne.