Patu-iki ("chief of chiefs") was the title that was given to the leader of the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

island of

Niue Niue is a self-governing island country in free association with New Zealand. It is situated in the South Pacific Ocean and is part of Polynesia, and predominantly inhabited by Polynesians. One of the world's largest coral islands, Niue is c ...

. The position was not hereditary, and was elected by the people from among the heads of influential families. John Macmillan Brown reported it as being "purely nominal", with no real power. The first Patu-Iki was Puni-mata in around 1700, and the last was Togia-Pulu-toaki, who ceded Niue to the British Crown in 1900. The concept of kingship in Niue may have arisen due to increased contact with the monarchial systems in place in

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 ...

and

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

References

Former monarchies of Oceania Niuean monarchs History of Niue {{Niue-stub

See also

References