The Culturalisation of Politics: Biculturalism versus Multiculturalism in Aotearoa New Zealand Jessica Terruhn Abstract Aotearoa New Zealand identifies as a bicultural nation built by two founding peoples – the white European settlers (Pakeha) and the indigenous Maori – and based on the Treaty of Waitangi signed in 1840 by representatives of the British Crown and a number of Maori rangatira (chiefs). Integral to the decolonising politics of the country, biculturalism stipulates, at least in theory, equal partnership between the two peoples, ‘with the values and traditions of both cultures reflected in society’s customs, laws, practice, and institutional arrangements, and with both sharing control over resources and decision making’ (O'Reilly and Wood 1991: 321). However, most Pakeha only support a soft form of biculturalism - such as the incorporation of traditional Maori cultural markers into the ‘mainstream’ - while largely opposing measures designed to redistribute power and resources. At the same time that the meaning of biculturalism is still contested, a shift in immigration policies has been leading to a larger multi-ethnic presence in New Zealand, especially in its largest city Auckland. This raises the question how de facto multiculturalism impacts on a national imaginary grounded in biculturalism. In this paper I will interrogate how European New Zealanders as the dominant ethnic group understand their position in relation to both biculturalism and multiculturalism. Presenting data from 38 biographical interviews with European New Zealanders in Auckland, I will show that the notion of multiculturalism with its emphasis on celebrating diversity provides a more comfortable and less threatening alternative to biculturalism. I argue that mapping Western hegemonic discourses of liberal multiculturalism onto a post-colonising settler society effectively allows the dominant ethnic group to redefine and depoliticise the concept of biculturalism. Keywords: Aotearoa New Zealand, Pakeha, Maori, biculturalism, post-colonialism, multiculturalism, Treaty of Waitangi 1