Te Huki was a

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

rangatira In Māori culture, () are tribal chiefs, the leaders (often hereditary) of a (subtribe or clan). Ideally, were people of great practical wisdom who held authority () on behalf of the tribe and maintained boundaries between a tribe's land ( ...

'' (chieftain) of the

Ngāti Kahungunu Ngāti Kahungunu is a Māori iwi (tribe) located along the eastern coast of the North Island of New Zealand. The iwi is traditionally centred in the Hawke's Bay and Wairārapa regions. The Kahungunu iwi also comprises 86 hapū (sub-tribes ...

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

'' and Ngāti Rakaipaaka ''

hapū In Māori language, Māori and New Zealand English, a ' ("subtribe", or "clan") functions as "the basic political unit within Māori society". A Māori person can belong to or have links to many hapū. Historically, each hapū had its own chief ...

'' from around the

Mohaka Mohaka is a small settlement in the northern Hawke's Bay region of the eastern North Island of New Zealand. It is located on the coast of Hawke Bay, 20 kilometres southwest of Wairoa. The Mohaka River reaches the coast close to Mohaka. Marae ...

in northern

Hawke Bay Hawke Bay (), formerly named ''Hawke's Bay'', is a large bay on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand, surrounded by the Hawke's Bay region. It stretches from Māhia Peninsula in the northeast to Cape Kidnappers / Te Kauwae-a-Mā ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. Through a set of marriages, he created a network of connections along the east coast of the

North Island The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List ...

, known as Te Kupenga a Te Huki ("the net of Te Huki"). He probably lived in the early eighteenth century.

Life

Te Huki was the son of Tureia and Hinekimihanga. Through his father, he was a direct male-line descendant of

Rakaipaaka Rakaipaaka was a Māori ''rangatira'' (chieftain) of the Ngāti Kahungunu ''iwi'' and ancestor of the hapū In Māori language, Māori and New Zealand English, a ' ("subtribe", or "clan") functions as "the basic political unit within Māori s ...

, and through both parents of

Kahungunu Kahungunu was a Māori people, Māori ''ariki'' (chieftain) of the Tākitimu tribal confederation and ancestor of the Ngāti Kahungunu and Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki ''iwi''. He probably lived in the late fifteenth century. Although born in Kaitaia, he ...

and

Tamatea Arikinui Tamatea Arikinui or Tamatea Mai-Tawhiti was a Māori people, Māori ''ariki'' (chieftain), who captained the ''Tākitimu'' canoe on its journey from Hawaiki to New Zealand, where he settled at Tauranga and became the ancestor of the Ngāti Kahungu ...

, who captained the '' Takitimu''

waka WAKA (channel 8) is a television station licensed to Selma, Alabama, United States, serving as the CBS affiliate for the Montgomery area. It is owned by Bahakel Communications alongside Tuskegee-licensed CW+ affiliate WBMM (channel 22); B ...

from

Hawaiki (also rendered as in the Cook Islands, Hawaiki in Māori, in Samoan, in Tahitian, in Hawaiian) is, in Polynesian folklore, the original home of the Polynesians, before dispersal across Polynesia. It also features as the underworld in man ...

to New Zealand. gives the line of descent from Kahungunu as: Te Huki - Tūreia - Tutekanao - Kaukohea - Rakaipaaka -

Kahukuranui Kahukuranui was a Māori ''ariki'' (chieftain) of the Ngāti Kahungunu ''iwi'' and ancestor of the Ngāti Kahukuranui hapū of Te Aitanga-a-Hauiti. He led an expedition to Te Pōrangahau in order to avenge Tūpouriao and marry his widow Tū-teih ...

- Kahungunu. He had two younger sisters, Te Rauhina, who married her cousin

Tapuwae Tapuwae (Māori for "footprints") may refer to: * Tapuwae Poharutanga o Tukutuku, an ancestor of Ngāti Kahungunu * Tapuwae River The Tapuwae River is a river of the Northland Region of New Zealand's North Island. Most of its length is as an arm ...

, and Te Rangimokai, who married

Te Hikawera Te Hikawera was a ''rangatira'' (chieftain) of the Ngāti Te Whatuiāpiti hapū of Ngāti Kahungunu, around the late seventeenth century. He maintained pā sites at Oueroa, Manahuna, and Kaimata, from which he exercised authority over the whole of ...

. Te Huki was originally based in the area along the coast of Hawke Bay between Waihua and

, which is known after him as Ngā Ngaru a Te Huki ("the waves of Te Huki"). Through a succession of marriages, Te Huki established a network of connections that extended along the east coast of the

from Tūranganui-a-Kiwa to

Wairarapa The Wairarapa (; ), a geographical region of New Zealand, lies in the south-eastern corner of the North Island, east of metropolitan Wellington and south-west of the Hawke's Bay Region. It is lightly populated, having several rural service t ...

, which was known as Te Kupenga a Te Huki ("the net of Te Huki"). The southern "post" of the net was his grandson Ngarangi-whakaupoko, whom he installed at Te Poroporo, near

Pōrangahau Pōrangahau is a small township close to the Pacific Ocean coast in the south-east of the North Island of New Zealand. It lies in the southernmost part of Hawke's Bay, 45 kilometres south of Waipukurau, and close to the mouth of the Pōrangaha ...

; the eastern "post" was his grandson Ngā-whaka-tātare, at

Whāngārā Whangara ( ) is a small community in the northeast of New Zealand's North Island, located between Gisborne and Tolaga Bay, five kilometres southwest of Gable End Foreland and two kilometres east of State Highway 35. The settlement features pro ...

; and the centre "float" was his son Puruaute. J.H. Mitchell reports that Te Huki's three wives all remained in their areas of origin, while he travelled between them. This made him popular with his in-laws' peoples and ensured that they supported his children as leaders. Other reports say that his first wife, Te Rangitohumare, settled with him at Wairoa. Te Huki was attacked, killed, and

eaten Eating (also known as consuming) is the ingestion of food. In biology, this is typically done to provide a heterotrophic organism with energy and nutrients and to allow for growth. Animals and other heterotrophs must eat in order to survive – ...

Te Whānau-ā-Apanui Te Whānau-ā-Apanui is a Māori iwi (tribe) located in the eastern Bay of Plenty and East Coast regions of New Zealand's North Island. In 2006, the iwi registered 11,808 members, representing 13 hapū. History Early history During the 17th ce ...

, while crossing the

Te Arai River The Te Ārai River is a river of the Gisborne Region of New Zealand's North Island. It flows generally north from its origins in rough hill country north of Nūhaka before veering northeast past the township of Manutuke to reach the Waipaoa Riv ...

on his way to visit his third wife at Tītīrangi in Tūranganui-a-Kiwa. This murder was avenged by his cousin Te-O-Tane and his grandson

Te Kahu-o-te-Rangi Te Kahu-o-te-rangi, originally Te Wainohu (died 1824) was a Māori people, Māori ''rangatira'' (chieftain) of the Ngāti Kahungunu ''iwi'' and founder of Ngāti Pāhauwera in the Mohaka area of Hawke Bay of New Zealand. He was the leader of an ...

at the Battle of Whāwhāpō.

Family

Te Huki's first marriage was to Te Rangitohumare, daughter of

and had three sons and a daughter: * Puruaute (son), the centre "post" of Te Huki's net, who was settled in the Wairoa region and married Te Matakainga-i-te-tihi, the senior child of

. They had three sons: :* Te Kapuamatotoru, father of

Te Ruruku Te Ruruku o te Rangi (fl. 1750-1800) was a Māori ''rangatira'' (chieftain) of the Ngāti Kahungunu ''iwi''. Born in the Wairoa River on the middle reaches of the Wairoa River in northern Hawke Bay, New Zealand, he was recruited as a war leader ...

, ancestor of

Ngāi te Ruruku Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

:* Mātaitai, ancestor of Īhaka Whaanga. :*

, ancestor of

Ngāti Pahauwera Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

* Mātaitai (son). * Hineraru (daughter), who married Hōpara of Pōrangahau: :* Ngārangi-whaka-ūpoko, the southern "post" of Te Huki's net. * Te Hauwaitanoa (son) Te Huki's second wife was Te Rōpūhina, a chieftainess of

Nūhaka Nūhaka is a small settlement in the northern Hawke's Bay Region of New Zealand's eastern North Island, lying on State Highway 2 between Wairoa and Gisborne. The road to Māhia Peninsula turns off the highway at Nūhaka. Nūhaka has one gen ...

: * Te Rākatō (son), who settled on the

Māhia Peninsula Māhia Peninsula () is located on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island, in the Hawke's Bay region, between the towns of Wairoa and Gisborne. It includes Rocket Lab's Launch Complex 1, located near Ahuriri Point at the southern tip ...

and was ancestor of

Ngāi Te Rākatō Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

* Tūreia (son), who settled at Nūhaka * Te Rehu (son), who settled at Nūhaka and was ancestor of Ngāi Te Rehu Te Huki's third wife was Rewanga, daughter of Te Aringa-i-waho, chief of Tītīrangi: * Te Kainui * Te Umupapa (daughter), who married Marukawiti, son of Kanohi: :* Ngā-whaka-tātare-o-te-rangi, the eastern "post" of Te Huki's net and ancestor of Te Kani-a-Takirau. According to J. H. Mitchell, only descendants of Te Huki and his brother-in-law Tapuwae are traditionally considered to be aristocrats among the Ngāti Kahungunu of the Wairoa area.

References

Bibliography

* * * *{{cite web , last1=Walker , first1=Wananga Te Ariki , title=Te Kupenga-a-Te Huki – Te Huki's Net , url=https://maungakorero.wordpress.com/maunga-korero/issue-17-moumoukai/te-kupenga-a-te-huki-te-hukis-net/ , website=Nga Maunga Korero , access-date=21 February 2024 , language=en , date=27 January 2014 Ngāti Kahungunu people People from Wairoa District 18th-century Māori tribal leaders