The term rangatiratanga was used to ensure that the chiefs would retain their continued possession of their lands, homes, and treasured possessions.

In the Treaty of Waitangi, rangatiratanga appears in Article 2 of the Māori text. It promised to uphold te tino rangatiratanga, or possession of their lands, homes, and treasured possessions (taonga). This was affirmed within the broader framework of British governance.

The term derives from rangatira (chief) and connotes traditional ownership. Modern interpretations have expanded rangatiratanga to mean self-determination or Māori sovereignty, but that was not how it was initially understood in 1840.