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Polynesian Mythology (book)
''Polynesian Mythology and Ancient Traditional History of the New Zealand Race as Furnished by Their Priests and Chiefs'' is an 1855 collection of Māori mythology compiled and translated by George Grey, Sir George Grey, then Governor-General of New Zealand, with significant assistance from Te Rangikāheke. The English edition is a translation of ''Ko ngā mahinga a ngā tūpuna Māori'' (''The Deeds of the Ancestors''), published in 1854, which was an expanded version of a manuscript entitled ''Ko ngā mōteatea, me ngā hakirara o ngā Māori'' (''The Traditional Chants and Songs of the Māori'') originally published in New Zealand in 1853. Compilation from primary sources In a preface to the book, George Grey writes that he felt he was unable to effectively communicate with Māori leaders and petitioners without speaking Māori language, Te Reo Māori and understanding the references and allusions made in writings. Grey writes that he felt that translators were not able to ade ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Polynesian Mythology (1855) Title Page
Polynesian mythology encompasses the oral traditions of the people of Polynesia (a grouping of Central and South Pacific Ocean island archipelagos in the Polynesian Triangle) together with those of the scattered cultures known as the Polynesian outliers. Polynesians speak languages that descend from a language reconstructed as Proto-Polynesian – probably spoken in the Tonga and Samoa area around 1000 BC. Description Prior to the 15th century AD, Polynesian peoples fanned out to the east, to the Cook Islands, and from there to other groups such as Tahiti and the Marquesas. Their descendants later discovered the islands from Tahiti to Rapa Nui, and later Hawai‘i and New Zealand. The latest research puts the settlement of New Zealand at about 1300 AD. The various Polynesian languages are all part of the Austronesian language family. Many are close enough in terms of vocabulary and grammar to permit communication between speakers of different languages. There are also subs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tū-te-wehiwehi
Tū-te-wehiwehi (also Tū-te-wanawana) is the father of all reptiles in Māori mythology. Family He is a son of Punga and brother of Ikatere. Punga's father was Tangaroa, atua of the sea. When Tāwhirimātea made war against his brothers for separating Rangi and Papa, Ikatere and Tū-te-wehiwehi had to flee, and Ikatere fled to the sea and became an ancestor of fishes, while Tū-te-wehiwehi took refuge in the forest and fathered lizards. Before Tū-te-wehiwehi and Ikatere fled, they disputed together as to what they should do to escape from the storms. One of Tu-te-wanwana's offspring was Uenuku, a lesser reptile atua. His mother was Mairangi, who was the daughter of Kauika, son of Wareware, son of Murirangawhenua and Mahuika. This Uenuku should not be confused with Uenuku Uenuku (or Uenuku-Kōpako, also given to some who are named after him) is an atua of rainbows and a prominent ancestor in Māori tradition. Māori believed that the rainbow's appearance represented ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hine-nui-te-pō
Hine-nui-te-pō ("the great woman of the night") in Māori legends, is a goddess of night who receives the spirits of humans when they die. She is the daughter of Tāne Mahuta / Tāne Tuturi and Hine-ahuone. It is believed among Māori that the colour red in the sky comes from her. Hine-nui-te-pō shepherds the wairua/souls into the first level of Rarohenga to ready them for the next stage of their journey. Before she was Hine-nui-te-po her name was Hine-ti-tama. Her father Tane Mahuta took her virginity; she then felt upset, hiding from her father in eternal darkness and became Hine-nui-te-po, goddess of the night. Background Hine-nui-te-pō, also known as the "Great Woman of Night", is a giant goddess of death and the underworld. Her father is Tāne, the god of forests and land mammals. Her mother Hine-ahu-one is a human, made from earth. Hine-nui-te-pō is the second child of Tāne and Hine-ahu-one. Her birth name, Tikikapakapa, was changed shortly thereafter to Hine-a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hinauri
In Māori mythology, Hinauri is the sister of Māui and the wife of Irawaru. Māui becomes annoyed with Irawaru and stretches out his limbs, turning him into a dog. When Hinauri asks Māui if he has seen her husband, Māui tells her to call "Moi! Moi!" whereupon the poor dog runs up, and Hinauri, learning the truth, throws herself into the sea. After drifting, Hinauri comes ashore at Wairarawa, where she is found by the brothers Ihuatamai and Ihuwareware. They restore her to health and take her as a wife, and Hinauri conceives a child by Ihuatamai. Ihuwareware tells the superior chief Tinirau of what has happened, and Tinirau takes Hinauri as a wife to live with him on Motutapu. There Hinauri is treated poorly by Tinirau's other wives, who attempt to kill her, so she chants incantations which kill them. Her brother Māuimua, also known as Rupe, comes searching for her and finds her on the day she gives birth, whereupon he flies her and her baby up to heaven to live with Rehua. S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Irawaru
In Māori mythology, Irawaru is the origin of the dog. He is the husband of Hinauri, the sister of Māui. Māui becomes annoyed with Irawaru and stretches out his limbs, turning him into a dog. When Hinauri asks Māui if he has seen her husband, Māui tells her to call "Moi! Moi!" whereupon the poor dog runs up to Hinauri. Learning the truth, she throws herself to Tangaroa (the ocean) never to be seen again. Versions differ as to the cause of Māui's annoyance with his brother-in-law. In some, he is jealous of Irawaru's success at fishing; in others, he is angry at Irawaru's refusal to give him a cloak, or disgusted at Irawaru's greedy nature. In other Ngā Puhi Nui Tonu mythology, three dogs were brought to Aotearoa by Kupe. These spirits were known as kehua or guardians brought over from Hawaiki. During the arrival to Aotearoa they were sent to Cape Reinga with a few men to guard the escape of their souls. The iwi later was named Ngāti Kurī. Their job was to guard the spir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Whaitiri
Whaitiri is a female atua and personification of thunder in Māori mythology. She is the grandmother of Tāwhaki and Karihi. Whaitiri is the granddaughter of Te Kanapu, son of Te Uira, both of whom are personified forms of lightning (Reed 1963:158). Another more primary atua of thunder, a male, is Tāwhirimātea. Marries Kaitangata Whaitiri is a fearsome figure, fond of cannibalism. When she hears of a mortal named Kaitangata (man-eater), she is certain he will make a fine husband for her. She comes down to earth and marries him, but is disappointed to learn that he is a gentle person, nothing like his name suggests. Whaitiri kills her favourite slave, Anonokia, takes out her heart and liver, and offers them to Kaitangata as a sign of her affection. He is horrified at the grisly offering (Reed 1963:158-159). Kaitangata is a hard worker, spending a lot of time fishing to feed his family. Unfortunately, he has never learned how to make hooks with a barb, and so most of his fi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mahuika
Mahuika is a Māori fire deity and consort of the god Auahitūroa. Myths In some versions, she is the younger sister of Hine-nui-te-pō, goddess of death. It was from her that Māui (in some versions he is her grandson) obtained the secret of making fire. She married Auahitūroa and together they had five children, named for the five fingers on the human hand, called collectively Ngā Mānawa. The symbolism of this connection between toropuku (fingers) and fire is revealed in the stories where Māui obtains fire from Mahuika by tricking her into giving him her fingernails one by one. She is also said to have played a role in the formation of Rangitoto Island, asking Rūaumoko, god of earthquakes and eruptions, to destroy a couple that had cursed her. In some parts of New Zealand, Mahuika is a male deity. This is also the case in some parts of tropical Polynesia; for instance, in the Tuamotu archipelago and the Marquesas, Mahu-ika is the fire god who lives in the u ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 of islands by area, world's 14th-largest island, constituting 43% of New Zealand's land area. It has a population of which is % of New Zealand's residents, making it the most populous island in Polynesia and the List of islands by population, 28th-most-populous island in the world. Twelve main urban areas (half of them officially cities) are in the North Island. From north to south, they are Whangārei, Auckland, Hamilton, New Zealand, Hamilton, Tauranga, Rotorua, Gisborne, New Zealand, Gisborne, New Plymouth, Napier, New Zealand, Napier, Hastings, New Zealand, Hastings, Whanganui, Palmerston North, and New Zealand's capital city Wellington, which is located at the south-west tip of the island. Naming and usage The island has been known ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Makeatutara
In Māori mythology, Makeatutara is the father of Māui. His wife is Taranga. He is a deity and guardian of the underworld The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underworld. .... Makeatutara made mistakes as he recited the dedicatory (or baptismal) incantations over Māui, which made it inevitable that Māui would die. As a result, humankind is mortal.E.R. Tregear, ''Maori-Polynesian Comparative Dictionary'' (Lyon and Blair: Lambton Quay, 1891), 233–234. References Māori gods {{deity-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kererū
The kererū (''Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae''), also known as kūkupa (Māori language#Northern dialects, northern Māori dialects), New Zealand pigeon or wood pigeon, is a species of pigeon native to New Zealand. Johann Friedrich Gmelin described the bird in 1789 as a large, conspicuous pigeon up to in length and in weight, with a white breast and iridescent green–blue plumage. Two subspecies have been recognised; the second—the Norfolk pigeon of Norfolk Island—became extinct in the early 20th century. Kererū pairs are Monogamy in animals, monogamous, breeding over successive seasons and remaining together when not breeding. They construct nests with twigs in trees, with a single egg clutch. Found in a variety of habitats across the country, the kererū feeds mainly on fruits, as well as leaves, buds and flowers. Although widespread in both forest and urban habitats, its numbers have declined significantly since European colonisation and the arrival of invasive mammals ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Taranga (Māori Mythology)
In Māori mythology, Taranga is the mother of Māui. Her husband is Makeatutara. Māui was born prematurely, so Taranga wrapped his body in her hair and threw him into the waves. Some sea-creatures cared for him, hiding him in kelp until a storm A storm is any disturbed state of the natural environment or the atmosphere of an astronomical body. It may be marked by significant disruptions to normal conditions such as strong wind, tornadoes, hail, thunder and lightning (a thunderstor ... sent him back to the beach. His ancestor, Tama-nui-a-rangi, found him and brought him back to life, and educated him. Māui arrived at his mother's village one day, and recognized his brothers. Taranga didn't know who he was until Māui reminded her of the circumstances of his birth. Each morning, Taranga would disappear and eventually Māui followed her to the underworld by assuming the shape of a wood pigeon. Māui found her with his father, Makeatutara, a guardian of the underworld ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Māui (Māori Mythology)
In Māori mythology, as in other Polynesian traditions, Māui is a culture hero, demigod and a trickster, famous for his exploits and cleverness. He possessed superhuman strength, and was capable of shapeshifting into animals such as birds and worms. He was born premature and cast into the ocean by his mother, where the waves formed him into a living baby. He was discovered by his grandfather and later went to live with his siblings. One day he followed his mother to the underworld where he met his father, Makeatutara, who baptised Māui incorrectly. As a punishment from the gods for this mishap, Māui and all of humanity were doomed to die. Māui is credited with catching a giant fish using a fishhook taken from his grandmother's jaw-bone; the giant fish would become the North Island of New Zealand, known as . In some traditions, his canoe () became the South Island, known as . His last trick, which led to his death, involved the goddess Hine-nui-te-pō. While attempting ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
