Hà «ria MÃÂtenga ( – 24 April 1909, also known as Julia Martin) was a MÃÂori leader and landowner. She was of NgÃÂti Tama, NgÃÂti Toa and Te ÃÂti Awa iwi descent. She was born in Whakapuaka, Nelson, New Zealand in about 1842.
MÃÂtenga was the daughter of Wikità Âria Te Amohau Te Keha (NgÃÂti Te Whiti) and Wëremu KÃÂtane Te Pà «oho, from whom she inherited land rights to over 17,000 acres of land around Whakapuaka in 1880.
MÃÂtenga entered an arranged marriage with HÃÂmi MÃÂtenga Wai-Punahau (also known as James Martin) in 1858. MÃÂtenga, along with her husband and others rescued the crew of the brigantine Delaware, which struck rocks in the Nelson region in 1863. From then on she was widely celebrated as the "Grace Darling of New Zealand." This took place during a period of armed conflict in Waikato and Taranaki, as the colonial government sought to suppress the Këngitanga movement and acquire MÃÂori land.
MÃÂtenga was also a highly skilled weaver and two of her woven items are in the collection at Te Papa Tongarewa Museum of New Zealand. MÃÂtengaâÂÂs piupiu (skirt) was gifted to Te Papa in 1961 and her korowai dates to around 1870. The limited scope of archival records relating to MÃÂtenga's weaving practice may be a result of the heteropatriarchal structures governing cultural norms at the time, where the stories of wÃÂhine MÃÂori (MÃÂori women) were often left out.