Nga wai hono i te po

Nga wai hono i te po (born 13 January 1997) is the Māori queen. She has reigned since 2024, when she was elected to succeed her father King Tūheitia. The youngest child and only daughter of Tūheitia, she is a direct descendant of the first Māori king, Pōtatau Te Wherowhero, who was installed in 1858. Titled Te Arikinui Kuīni, she is the eighth monarch and the second queen of the Kīngitanga. Nga wai hono i te po was born into the Kīngitanga royal family during the reign of her paternal grandmother Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu. Her parents are Kīngi Tūheitia Pōtatau Te Wherowhero VII and Makau Ariki Atawhai Paki. Her early life was steeped in the cultural and spiritual practices of the Māori people, with a particular focus on the traditions of the Kīngitanga movement. Following the death of her father, Nga wai hono i te po was selected as the Māori queen by a wānanga (forum) of tribal leaders that was convened by the Tekau-mā-rua. Her coronation took place at Tūrangawaewae Marae, the seat of the Kīngitanga, in a ceremony attended by leaders and dignitaries from across the country and the Pacific. Her accession was seen as a continuation of the Kīngitanga's mission to unify Māori people and protect their rights.