I whanau mai a Witi Ihimaera DCNZM, QSM ki Turanganui-a-Kiwa, a, he uri no Te Aitanga-a-Mahaki, no Rongowhakaata me Ngati Porou. He hononga hoki ona ki a Tuhoe, ki a Te Whanau-a-Apanui, ki a Ngati Kahungunu me Ngai Tamanuhiri. He kaitakawaenga kawanatanga, he ahorangi, ko ia hoki tetahi o nga kaituhi maruwehi e ora tonu ana. Ko etahi o ana pukapuka maha, ko Pounamu, Pounamu (1972), ko The Matriarch (1985) me The Whale Rider (1987) - i mahia ai hai whitiata rongonui i te tau 2002, i whakamaoritia ai hoki e Ta Timoti Karetu. Kua whakawhiwhia a ia ki nga tohu maha, tae atu ra ki te Wattie Book of the Year Award, ki te Montana Book Award me te Prime Minister's Award for Literary Achievement. I te tau 2004, i whakaingoatia a ia hai Distinguished Companion of the Order of New Zealand, a, i te tau 2017, ka utaina te tohu nei ki runga ki a ia e Paranihi te Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. ________

Witi Ihimaera DCNZM, QSM, was born in Gisborne and is of Te Aitanga-a-Mahaki, Rongowhakaata and Ngati Porou descent with connections to Tuhoe, Te Whanau-a-Apanui, Ngati Kahungunu and Ngai Tamanuhiri. Diplomat, professor and one of Aotearoa's most distinguished living writers, his many books include Pounamu, Pounamu (1972), The Matriarch (1985) and The Whale Rider (1987), made into a hugely successful film in 2002 and also translated into Maori by Timoti Karetu. He has received numerous awards, including the Wattie Book of the Year Award, the Montana Book Award and a Prime Minister's Award for Literary Achievement. In 2004 he became a Distinguished Companion of the Order of New Zealand and in 2017 France made him Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.