(b Oparure, NZ, 1892). Maori weaver. Her tribal affiliation was Ngati Maniapoto/Ngati Kinohaku. Hetet was taught the traditional skills of weaving by her mother and other local women elders in the late 19th century, when weaving was still a part of daily life, rather than a craft. During the 1950s she intensified her activity as a weaver, regularly producing cloaks and other items with the encouragement of the Maori Women’s Welfare League, an organization set up in 1951 to enable Maori women to play an effective part in the cultural, social and economic development of their community, and one of whose concerns was to ensure the survival of the ancient art of weaving. Hetet was a traditionalist, well-versed in all aspects of weaving, from the preparation of traditional materials and dyes, to the methods and techniques involved in producing the finished article. She was widely acknowledged as the leading authority in the arts of whatu, taaniko and raranga, and as an expert in kakahu (cloak weaving), the most prestigious form of Maori weaving. She was also largely responsible for the revival of harakeke (flax fibre). She passed on her skills not only to her family, notably her daughter, Diggeress Te Kanawa, also a well-known weaver, but also to many other women throughout New Zealand.

• Hetet, Rangimarie
  • Maori, §2: After c 1900
  • Te Kanawa, Diggeress