Scott Hamilton

Scott Hamilton is the author of two great modern works of sociology and place, Ghost South Road (Titus Books, 2018), and Searching for Ata'a (Bridget Williams, 2017). He writes the blog Reading the Maps and is currently working on a book about sorcery and sorcery-related violence in Melanesia. Scott was born in Auckland in 1974.

Society

Dec 29, 2020

'Let them starve': The lockdown of 1913 and its lessons for today

History warns that we should be wary of the misuse of power in the name of public health.

Society

Jul 9, 2020

Four Pākehā heroes for empty plinths

Historian Scott Hamilton picks four heroic early New Zealanders of European descent.

Society

Apr 2, 2020

'Let them starve': The lockdown of 1913 and its lessons for today

History warns that we should be wary of the misuse of power in the name of public health.

Ātea

Feb 25, 2020

Ancient giants and old delusions: a history of mysticism and racism in Aotearoa

A group discovered to be digging for proof of a giant pre-Māori race in the limestone caves of Waikato have not lost their minds all of a sudden, but are continuing a legacy of religion-based racism in the area, writes Scott Hamilton.

Society

Jan 27, 2020

In New Zealand we need to recall our own links to the Holocaust

In the context of increasing ignorance about the Holocaust, it's crucial we understand that viewed through the lens of history, 1930s New Zealand does not emerge guilt-free.

Ātea

Jun 27, 2019

New Zealand’s long and violent history of anti-Indian racism

The young Indian man assaulted on the streets of Sandringham earlier this month migrated to New Zealand in the belief is was a peaceful, tolerant place. Our history suggests otherwise, writes Scott Hamilton.

Ātea

Mar 20, 2019

The land of the long white stain

The killer was an Australian. But New Zealand has a long history of white supremacist ideology, writes Scott Hamilton.

Society

Dec 4, 2018

Three myths about North Sentinel Island

The recent killing of an American by a North Sentinel tribe has put the isolated island on the map. Scott Hamilton sheds light on three myths about the North Sentinelese.

Books

May 28, 2018

The Monday Excerpt: exploring the soul of the Great South Road

No other road in New Zealand is as rich in history, suffering, war, immigration, hope and hard, hard work as the Great South Road that joins Auckland to the Waikato. Scott Hamilton walked its length and felt its pulse.

Society

Apr 22, 2018

The first, forgotten Anzacs, more than 50 years before Gallipoli

Australian and New Zealand volunteers fought together in the Waikato War, yet still its place in the Anzac tradition is unacknowledged by our defence forces or Returned Services Association

Books

Apr 19, 2018

Book of the Week: The lost civilisation of New Zealand literature

Scott Hamilton notices something missing in the long, feverish construction of New Zealand literature - the rest of the Pacific.

Society

Feb 24, 2018

Peter Thiel is looking for paradise in New Zealand. History is against him

Peter Thiel’s looking for paradise in the South Pacific – but history suggests he’ll find trouble

Society

Jan 7, 2018

Summer Reissue: The white tangata whenua, and other bullshit from the ‘One New Zealand’ crew

The exhumed skull of a 3,000-year-old Welshwomen. Nazi submarines. Ancient Spanish shipwrecks. The pre-Māori white civilisation theories of Noel Hilliam and his friends have a lot going for them. Except any plausible evidence, writes Scott Hamilton.

Books

Jan 4, 2018

Summer Reissue: The strange story of Tonga’s lost island of ‘Ata

Scott Hamilton's The Stolen Island is an investigation into the people-snatching raid on the Tongan island of 'Ata in 1863. In this excerpt, he writes about visiting 'Eua, the island where the survivors of the raid were re-settled.

Society

Nov 28, 2017

Treaty of Waitangi denialism: a long, dark and absurd history

Building magnate Sir William Gallagher's recent comments calling the Treaty of Waitangi a 'fraud' have been roundly condemned. But he's not the first to believe it, writes Scott Hamilton.

Society

Aug 5, 2017

In praise of kava

While politicians debates the pros and cons of decriminalising cannabis, another even safer soft drug is already freely available in New Zealand. Scott Hamilton explores the history and importance of kava in the Pacific Islands, and why it could be the drug of New Zealand's future.

Society

May 22, 2017

The white tangata whenua, and other bullshit from the ‘One New Zealand’ crew

The exhumed skull of a 3,000-year-old Welshwomen. Nazi submarines. Ancient Spanish shipwrecks. The pre-Māori white civilisation theories of Noel Hilliam and his friends have a lot going for them. Except any plausible evidence, writes Scott Hamilton

Books

Feb 27, 2017

‘They have six fingers on their hands’: Part 1 of the strange story of Tonga’s lost island of ‘Ata

All week this week the Spinoff Review of Books looks at Scott Hamilton's brilliant, slim book, The Stolen Island, his investigation into the people-snatching raid on the Tongan island of 'Ata. In this excerpt, he writes about visiting 'Eua, the island where the survivors of the 1863 raid were re-settled; their descendants live in the village of Kolomaile.

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