Genealogy is a fundamental principle in Māori culture, termed specifically in this context as whakapapa (Māori pronunciation: [ˈfakapapa], ['ɸa-], lit. 'layering'). Reciting one's whakapapa proclaims one's identity among the Māori, places oneself in a wider context, and links themself to land and tribal groupings and their mana.
Experts in whakapapa can trace and recite a lineage not only through the many generations in a linear sense, but also between such generations in a lateral sense.