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Pulotu
Pulotu is the resting place of those passed on in the Polynesian narrative of Tonga and Samoa, the world of darkness "lalo fonua" (as opposed to the human world of light). Name The term is related to Fijian ''Burotu''. It goes back to Proto-Polynesian ''*pulotu'', from Proto-Central Pacific ''*burotu''. Tonga In the Tongan narrative, Pulotu is presided over by Havea Hikuleʻo. In Tongan cosmology the sky, the sea, and Pulotu existed from the beginning, and the gods lived there. The first land they made for the people was Touiaʻifutuna "trapped in Futuna", which was only a rock. There are suggestions that for Tonga and Samoa, Pulotu refers to a real country, in fact Matuku Island in the Lau Islands. The old name of Matuku Island is Burotu. However, there is no signs of underwater civilization in the Matuku waters where they said that Burotu once laid. But new evidence suggest Pulotu is situated in Moturiki belonging to Fiji’s Lomaiviti Archipelago. After the indepen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hikuleʻo
In the mythology of Tonga, Havea Hikuleo is the goddess of the world, Pulotu.The Samoan equivalent is Savea Siuleo. The islands of Kao, Tofua, Hunga Haapai, Hunga Tonga, Late and Fonualei came from stones thrown down from the skies by Hikuleo. They are all volcanic islands. The other, (coral) islands were fished up by her brother or cousin Maui. Mythology Hikuleʻo's ancestors were, according to one source, the god Pil'e ( Limu according to others) and the goddess Kele, who came from Pulotu and created the mythical land of Tongamamaʻo for their children to dwell in. They had a son Toiukamea "Hidden Iron" and a daughter Māʻimoaʻalōngona "Royal Game of Hearing" who married each other and had children. This pair seems to be a modern invention, since ''ukamea'' "iron" is a word that postdates European contact; other informants leave out this generation. Among their children were many sons, the boy Taufulifonua and the girl Havea Lolofonua. One day they lay on the beach, naked ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nafanua
Nafanua was a historical ''aliʻi'' (Paramount Chief/Queen) and ''toa'' (warrior) of Samoa from the Sā Tonumaipeʻa clan, who took the four ''pāpā'' (district) titles, the leading ''aliʻi'' titles of Samoa. After her death she became a goddess in Polynesian religion. There are historical and mythological traditions about Nafanua's family and life. She reportedly played a crucial role in the civil wars between the districts of eastern and western Savaiʻi. Life Family According to Samoan mythology, she was the daughter of Saveasiʻuleo, also considered a demigod, the Aliʻi of Pulotu. Pulotu was both a historical place, and a place of the afterlife for the warriors of Samoa (comparable to the Viking concept of Valhalla). In one tradition, Nafanua's mother was Tilafaiga the sister of Taema, the legendary conjoined twins, whom brought the malu tattoo to Samoa. Adulthood Nafanua was bestowed the title of Toa/Toa Tamaʻitaʻi (or Warrior Princess) for avenging her uncle and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Samoan Mythology
Samoan culture tells stories of many different deities. There were deities of the forest, the seas, rain, harvest, villages, and war. There were two types of deities, ''atua'', who had non-human origins, and ''aitu'', who were of human origin. Tagaloa was a supreme god who made the islands and the people. Mafuiʻe was the god of earthquakes. There were also a number of war deities. Nafanua, Samoa's warrior goddess hails from the village of Falealupo at the western end of Savai'i island, which is also the site of the entry into Pulotu, the spirit world. She also is regarded as a peace bringer, having brought peace to Savai'i through winning the wars between the two regions of the island. Tilafaiga is the mother of Nafanua. Nafanua's father, Saveasi'uleo, was the god of Pulotu. Another well-known legend tells of two sisters, Tilafaiga, the mother of Nafanua, and Taema, bringing the art of tattooing to Samoa from Fiji. A figure of another legend is Tui Fiti, who resides at ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tongan Narrative
Tongan narrative, Tongan mythology, or ancient Tongan religion, sometimes referred to as tala-ē-fonua (meaning, "telling of the land and its people") Māhina, 'Okusitino. (1992The Tongan Traditional History Tala-Ē-Fonua A Vernacular Ecology-Centered Historico-Cultural Concept, p. iii., vi. in Tongan, is the collation of various myths, legends, stories, traditions, characters, creatures, spirits, and gods of the Polynesian islands that now make up the island nation of Tonga. It is a variant of other Polynesian mythologies with multiple cultural and religious overlaps, however it is considered to be distinct from other Polynesian mythologies as it can be studied more specifically to understand the history and culture of Tonga, as well it can also be studied more broadly within the fields of history, anthropology, and mythology. Creation myth In the beginning there was just the sea and the spirit world, Pulotu, and between them was a rock called Touiao Futuna. On the rock lived ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Falealupo
Falealupo is a village in Samoa situated at the west end of Savai'i island from the International Date Line used until 29 December 2011. The village has two main settlements, Falealupo-Uta, situated inland by the main island highway and Falealupo-Tai, situated by the sea. The road to the coastal settlement is about 9 km, most of it unsealed, from the main highway. The village's population is 545. Due to its location in the west of the country, and because Samoa was just to the east of the International Date Line, Falealupo has been described as "the last village in the world to see the sunset of each day". This has now changed, as the Samoan government has moved the International Date Line east of the country in 2011. Families have moved inland for the convenience of living by the main road near public transport, as well as the extensive damage to the coastal village from cyclones in the early 1990s, which left behind old church ruins along the coast. There are rock pools, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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. The concept of an underworld is found in almost every civilization and "may be as old as humanity itself". Common features of underworld myths are accounts of living people making journeys to the underworld, often for some heroic purpose. Other myths reinforce traditions that the entrance of souls to the underworld requires a proper observation of ceremony, such as the ancient Greek story of the recently dead Patroclus haunting Achilles until his body could be properly buried for this purpose. People with high social status were dressed and equipped in order to better navigate the underworld. A number of mythologies incorporate the concept of the soul of the deceased making its own journey to the underworld, with the dead needing to be ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burotu
In the Melanesian mythology of Fiji, Burotu is the paradise-underworld. Newly dead souls are judged by Degei, and a few go to Burotu. The rest go to Murimuria.T. Williams, J. Calvert, ''Fiji and the Fijians'', Heylin, 1858. See also * Bulu, said to be the name for the Fijian 'land of death' *Pulotu, a similar concept in the Polynesian cultures of Tonga and Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ... References Fijian mythology Afterlife places Conceptions of heaven Underworld {{Fiji-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Māui (mythology)
Māui or Maui is the great culture hero and trickster in Polynesian mythology. Very rarely was Māui actually worshipped, being less of a deity (demigod) and more of a folk hero. His origins vary from culture to culture, but many of his main exploits remain relatively similar.Craighill Handy 1927: 118 Tales of Māui's exploits and adventures are told throughout most of Polynesia; they can be traced back as far west as islands off New Guinea. Some exploits common to most Polynesian traditions are stealing fire for humans from the underworld, fishing up islands with his magical hook, and capturing the Sun to lengthen the days. There is a great deal of variation in the representations of Māui from nation to nation, from being a handsome young man, to being a wise old wandering priest. Although Māui was said to be very rascally or "kolohe", many of his deeds were to better the lives of his fellow people. Māori mythology In Māori mythology, as in other Polynesian traditions, M� ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Samoa
Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono and Apolima), and several smaller, uninhabited islands, including the Aleipata Islands (Nuʻutele, Nuʻulua, Fanuatapu and Namua). Samoa is located west of American Samoa, northeast of Tonga, northeast of Fiji, east of Wallis and Futuna, southeast of Tuvalu, south of Tokelau, southwest of Hawaii, and northwest of Niue. The capital and largest city is Apia. The Lapita culture, Lapita people discovered and settled the Samoan Islands around 3,500 years ago. They developed a Samoan language and Culture of Samoa, Samoan cultural identity. Samoa is a Unitary state, unitary Parliamentary system, parliamentary democracy with 11 Districts of Samoa, administrative divisions. It is a sovereign state and a membe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fijian Language
Fijian (') or iTaukei is an Austronesian languages, Austronesian language of the Malayo-Polynesian languages, Malayo-Polynesian family spoken by some 350,000–450,000 ethnic Fijians as a native language. The 1997 Constitution of Fiji#New Constitution for 2013, 2013 Constitution established Fijian as an official languages of Fiji, language of Fiji, along with English and Fiji Hindi and there is discussion about establishing it as the "national language". Fijian is a verb–object–subject, VOS language. Standard Fijian is based on the Bau (island)#Language, Bau dialect, which is an East Fijian language. Pidgin Fijian, A pidginized form is used by many Indo-Fijians and Chinese in Fiji, Chinese on the islands, while Pidgin Hindustani is used by many rural ethnic Fijians and Chinese in areas dominated by Indo-Fijians. History History of the language The Fijian language was introduced to Fiji 3500 years ago by the islands' first settlers. For millennia, it was the only spoke ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Polynesian Mythology
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 als ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
