NGARUAWAHIA, (New Zealand): A council of New Zealand's indigenous Maori chiefs anointed a new queen on Thursday, as a flotilla of war canoes readied to transport her father, the late monarch, for burial on a sacred mountain.

Twenty-seven-year-old Nga Wai hono i te po Paki - a surprise choice to be the next Maori leader - was cheered as she sat atop a high-backed wooden throne.

The new monarch was unveiled during an elaborate "rising up" ceremony on the country's North Island that was attended by thousands.

She ushered to the throne by a phalanx of bare chested and tattooed men bearing ceremonial spears - who chanted, screamed and shouted in acclamation.

A choir of women, cloaked in black and wearing ceremonial wreaths of kawakawa leaves on their heads, sang.

The Maori monarch is a mostly ceremonial role with no legal status.

But it has enormous cultural, and sometimes political, significance - as a potent symbol of Maori identity and kinship.

New Zealand's Maori make up about 17 percent of the population, or about 900,000 people.

Queen Nga wai is the eighth Maori monarch and the second queen.

Her grandmother, Queen Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu, held the position for four decades until 2006.

Her father, King Tuheitia, will be buried later Thursday.

King Tuheitia, a 69-year-old truck-driver-turned-royal, died on Friday, just days after heart surgery and celebrations marking the 18th anniversary of his coronation.

During the late king's periods of ill health, his eldest son, Whatumoana Te Aa Paki, took over official duties - raising expectations that he would be named the successor.

Instead it was his youngest sister who was named.

The Kiingitanga, or Maori King movement, was founded in 1858 with the aim of uniting New Zealand's Indigenous Maori under a single sovereign in the face of British colonisation.

For the last six days, Tuheitia's body has been laid in state at an ornate ceremonial complex on the country's North Island.

Tens of thousands of Indigenous citizens and "Pakeha" - those of European ancestry - have visited to pay respects, mourn and celebrate New Zealand's rich Maori heritage.

 - AFP