Current research into, and definitions of, historical literacy do not adequately acknowledge the cultural backgrounds of indigenous learners across the historical disciplines and levels. Nor do they recognise the vital role of historical literacy in empowering indigenous students. In talanoa (conversations) with Maori and Pasifika students and teachers of a range of ethnicities from across the historical disciplines, the authors asked: How can we inspire indigenous students to feel at home in the historical disciplines, do well in them, and make them their own? In this report, the authors argue that pedagogy in the historical disciplines that sustains Maori and Pasifika students culturally enables them to perform their culture through historical literacy--and thus to see history (both history per se and their histories) as open to their knowledge, critique, and ownership. This study explored the role of culturally sustaining pedagogy in teaching historical literacy in two ways. First, the authors bridged discipline-specific understandings of historical literacy and pedagogy by generating cross-disciplinary dialogue among the teaching-research partners. Then they problematised received viewpoints of teaching historical literacy by focusing on Maori and Pasifika student perceptions of historical literacy, and drawing on Maori and Pasifika methodologies to investigate these perceptions and translate them into teaching interventions. The authors found no particular difference of perspective between the Maori and Pasifika students with whom they spoke on the subjects that were discussed. Differences of opinion were more pronounced among the teachers.