Tīmoti Kāretu
Sir Tīmoti Samuel Kāretu is a New Zealand academic of Māori language and performing arts, and affiliates to Ngāi Tūhoe and Ngāti Kahungunu. He served as the inaugural head of the Department of Māori at the University of Waikato, and rose to the rank of professor. He was the first Māori language commissioner, between 1987 and 1999, and then was executive director of Te Kohanga Reo National Trust from 1993 until 2003. In 2003, he was closely involved in the foundation of Te Panekiretanga o te Reo, the Institute of Exellence in Māori Language, and served as its executive director.
In the 1993 New Year Honours, Kāretu was appointed a Companion of the Queen's Service Order for public services, and in the 2017 Queen's Birthday Honours he was named a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to the Māori language. He has been conferred honorary doctorates by Victoria University of Wellington in 2003, and the University of Waikato in 2008.
In 2019, Kāretu translated nine songs from English to Māori language for the album, Waiata / Anthems, which peaked at number 1 on the New Zealand album charts in September 2019.
