wow! this is awesome I've said to a cuople of other people, but not alot of people who aren't maori don't pull this off very well and you've done an awesome job it takes ages to draw maori designs aye? hahaha
hmmmm you'll be hardpressed to find out what alot of the symbols mean. To be honest I'm not sure that the negative space means anything, alot of the times contemporary maori artists make these family members or important moments in life. The inside detail however, in your case looks like weaving on th top right and lower middle, while the rest of it is actually called Niho Taniwha or dragon tooth notch. It's a decorative feature used in Maori carving. Our tribal areas also have particular features which distinguish where you're from. For an example, my area is right under a mountain, so almost all our carvings have pointed heads like mountains. Have a look at this site [link]age&id=sp57&arent=52 it may help you out, otherwise it's worth investing in some books. I have too many books to scan in and stuff but if you have a specific design just ask and I'll do my best to help you out