People of Selwyn

Which people can I learn about?

Here are some people related to Selwyn you could find out about:

Tips: These are just some examples of people you could research. You may have someone different you're interested in finding out about. Just use their name as your search terms in the resources below.

Local iwi:

• Ngāi Tahu

Note: Iwi are listed in alphabetical order. This list was put together to the best of our knowledge. If there are any other iwi to be included, please let us know.

Selwyn resources

Here are some sources you could look at if you'd like to find out about individual people or groups of people relating to Selwyn.

Ngāi Tahu

This is the official website for the people of the Ngāi Tahu iwi. It has information about their history and culture.

• Go to Ngāi Tahu, then History to explore Ngāi Tahu history and stories.

• Go to the Opportunities & Resources tab and Resources to explore Ngāi Tahu culture such as traditional food gathering and art.

Tips: Some websites have .iwi in their url. This tells you that the website belongs to an iwi and likely has Māori knowledge (mātauranga Māori).

Te Taumutu Rūnanga

This is the website for Te Taumutu Rūnanga. They are a Papatipu Rūnanga for Ngāi Tahu and have guardianship over land and water in their area.

• Go to Kupu Tuku Iho | Our History.

• This page has information of the history of Māori in Selwyn and Canterbury places.

Kā Kōrero o Waikirikiri | Selwyn Stories

This is a place for stories about Selwyn's past and present. It includes pictures, written and oral narratives, and collections of items.

• Search using the name of a person or group of people.

• Or go to the People people menu to browse.

• Select a person to find a biography and any items related to them.

Tips: Stories can be told in different ways. It’s a good idea to look at multiple information sources about a topic to help you put together your own narrative.

Selwyn Heritage Collection

A reference collection of historical books and pamphlets that can be found at Te Ara Ātea library in Rolleston or Darfield Library.

• Browse the collection online.

• Or enter your keywords in the search box.

• Then in Limit Search Results under Shelf Location choose Selwyn Heritage Collection.

• You can then see the items and which library they can be found at.

• Or you can visit the library and ask a librarian for help.

Tips: Before searching it can be useful to come up with a list of words to use. These are sometimes called keywords. They can be the name of a person, place, or event you are researching.

Kareao

The Ngāi Tahu Archive which is made up of collections of tribal significance. This includes maps, photographs, biographies and audio-visual material.

• Enter a name or keyword into the search bar.

• Select an item to find out more.

• Or go to Biographies to browse.

• Choose a person and then find Click to read this document.

General New Zealand resources

These websites have some fantastic information about the history of New Zealand and Selwyn.

Dictionary of New Zealand Biography (DNZB)

This website has over 3,000 biographies of New Zealanders who have made their mark on this country. It does not include people who are alive. This site includes around 500 biographies that are in te reo Māori.

• Use the names of the people as search words to read about their lives and what they achieved, or

• you can do an Advanced Biographies Search which allows you to narrow down your search by region.

Tips: DNZB is part of Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand and belongs to the Ministry of Culture and Heritage, so information is well-researched and reliable. You can tell this from their web address — they have .govt meaning they are from government organisations. They are also New Zealand sites, so relevant for us.

NZHistory

NZHistory is a great website for information about New Zealand Aotearoa. If we go all the way down the page we can see that the website belongs to the Ministry for Culture & Heritage, so the information is well-researched and reliable.

• Browse the collection online.

• Or enter the name of a person or group of people in the search box.

Papers Past

Papers Past is a searchable collection of early New Zealand newspapers (19th and 20th centuries), letters, diaries, magazines and Parliamentary Papers digitised by the National Library and partners. It includes the Ellesmere Guardian newspaper.

• Choose the type of paper at the top bar.

• Use keywords in the search box.

• Sort articles by best match.

• Select an item to read it.

Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand

Te Ara is an excellent starting point for all questions about New Zealand Aotearoa. If we look down to the bottom of the page we can see that the website belongs to the Ministry for Culture & Heritage, so the information is well-researched and reliable.

• Browse the collection online.

• Or enter your keywords in the search box.

• Choose the information needed, images, articles etc.

DigitalNZ

This is a search site that focuses on Aotearoa New Zealand's history and brings together results from lots of different websites such as New Zealand libraries, museums, universities, and government sites all at once.

• Search using the name of a person or a group of people.

• Look at a range of videos, audio, articles and images, and more about your topic.

Books

These books are all about Selwyn and it's history. Your local librarian is a great person to ask for the best books about your local area. There are copies of the books available to borrow from Selwyn Libraries.

• Ellesmere : the jewel in the Canterbury crown by George Reginald Singleton, Stephen Wright & Rowan Taylor.

• Selwyn : from the hills to the sea by Ellesmere Camera Club.

• In the shadow of the Alps : a history of Malvern County, 1853-1989 by E G R Dobbie & Brian Perrin.

More about Selwyn