Locating iwi resources : investigating the problems and issues involved in creating a national electronic bibliographic iwi database

Abstract

A large proportion of information on Maori tribes (iwi) is of limited accessibility owing to the difficulty in locating it. A number of bibliographies and finding aids have been created in order to try to resolve this problem, but they are limited in their scope, either by focusing on specific iwi, specific subjects or the holdings of specific institutes. No national or even regional tribal database exists. This severely hinders research into iwi history. This research project postulates the creation of a National Electronic Bibliographic Iwi Database (NEBID), which would be designed to enhance access to Maori tribal information. It examines the reasons, methods and issues that would be involved in its creation, the needs it would meet and the problems it might encounter, including issues of accessibility, intellectual property and delivery of services. It achieves this through a study of works on related issues of Maori research and through examinations of similar projects, including Iwidex and other Maori finding aids.