Taramea, a treasured Māori perfume of Ngāi Tahu from Aciphylla species of Aotearoa New Zealand: a review of Mātauranga Māori and scientific research

ABSTRACT

Taramea is the prized resinous exudate obtained from native Aciphylla plants (speargrass) identified as a taonga by Ngāi Tahu Māori in their Treaty of Waitangi tribunal claim Settlement. Ngāi Tahu recognised two types of Aciphylla, the larger was known as taramea and used as a fragrance, while the tap root of the smaller type, called papaī, was eaten but not used as kakara (fragrance). The gum of the taramea is called ‘ware’ or ‘wai-whenua’, and was often spoken as ‘ware-o-te-taramea’. Plants were traditionally tapped in the evening by cutting or using fire. In the morning the exuded resin was gathered and processed. To preserve the aroma it was saturated in hinu-weka (woodhen fat) or the fat of other native bird or animal species (tui, kiore) and worn in a pouch (hei-taramea) close to the body. Taramea was used to dress the hair and rub on the body and became a sought after trade item with northern tribes. Scientific studies on taramea plants include those relating to plant morphology, taxonomy, genetics, ecology and phytochemistry. A resurgence of interest in taramea is supporting further scientific studies to define the chemical composition of this taonga plant.

KEYWORDS:

• Apiaceae
• ecology
• fragrance
• Mātauranga Māori
• phytochemistry

Acknowledgements

Firstly, we would like to acknowledge the tangata whenua of this region, ki a Ngāi Tahu, ngā mihi mahana ki a koutou. We are grateful to the following people: Tā Tipene O'Regan (Ngāi Tahu) for comments and suggestions on this manuscript; Jim Williams and Ian Barber (University of Otago) for discussions on taramea; and to David Glenny (Manaaki Whenua, Landcare Research) for discussions on Aciphylla taxonomy and advice on mapping.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

We gratefully acknowledge support from the NZ Ministry for Primary Industries Sustainable Farming Fund, Maori Agribusiness Project (M12/152). This work was also partly supported by the New Zealand Foundation for Research, Science and Technology (C02X0601 Distinctly NZ flavours from native NZ plants), now the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment and a Plant and Food Research/Rangahau Ahumara Kai Māori Summer Studentship programme awarded to ADW.