who owns my land?

In his article ‘On equality and colourblindness’  Neville Robertson quotes “I grew up on a farm carved out of land taken in a dodgy deal from Ngai Tahu – a farm which gave me and my family a good start in life. My current home is built on land illegally confiscated from Tainui”. This got me thinking about the history of the land that I currently live on with my family. I asked my father and he had no idea nor did my mother. I continued to ask friends and neighbours if they knew who origionally owned their land and they had no idea either. Allthough we briefly knew the history of land in New Zealand it was suprising to think that the land we live on could be stolen, iligally taken or unfairly traded from the Maori and it sadded us to think about that the land we live on could have been taken in this mannor. I am awear that Maori tribes once lived in my area as on a tour I did a couple of years ago with my mother we learnt that there were shells mixed in with the dirt on the mountain as maoris use to collect food from the sea and bury their rubbish up high, evidence that it is very possible that Maoris once owned or at least used the land in the area I live in. My friends and I are interested in seeking more information to find out the history of the land we live on.