Tamatea Arikinui or Tamatea Mai-Tawhiti 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 ...

ariki An ariki (New Zealand, Cook Islands), ꞌariki ( Easter Island), aliki (Tokelau, Tuvalu), ali‘i (Samoa, Hawai‘i), ari'i (Society Islands, Tahiti), Rotuma) aiki or hakaiki ( Marquesas Islands), akariki (Gambier Islands) or ‘eiki (Tonga) is o ...

'' (chieftain), who captained the ''

Tākitimu ''Tākitimu'' was a ''waka (canoe), waka'' (canoe) with ''whakapapa'' throughout the Pacific Ocean, Pacific particularly with Samoa, the Cook Islands, and New Zealand in ancient times. In several Māori mythology, Māori traditions, the ''Tāk ...

'' canoe on its journey 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, where he settled at

Tauranga Tauranga (, Māori language for "resting place," or "safe anchorage") is a coastal city in the Bay of Plenty Region and the List of cities in New Zealand, fifth-most populous city of New Zealand, with an urban population of or roughly 3% of t ...

and became the ancestor 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. ...

''. J. H. Mitchell places Tamatea in the mid-fourteenth century. In Ngāti Kahungunu tradition, he is distinguished from his grandson Tamatea Urehaea who undertook extensive explorations of New Zealand. Northland and Tauranga traditions say that they were the same person.

Life

Tamatea was born and raised in Hawaiki, the legendary homeland of the Māori before they came to New Zealand. J. H. Mitchell's history of Ngāti Kahungunu provides no information on his ancestry or early life. In Hawaiki, Tamatea became an Arikinui ("great chieftain"), who led the tribes of Ngāti Hukumoana, Ngāti Hakuturi, and Ngāti Tutakahinahina, which lived in the villages of Whāngārā, Pakarae, and Rehuroa.

Journey to New Zealand

When the explorer Hoaki returned to Hawaiki with the news that New Zealand was sparsely populated, Tamatea was inspired to build a canoe, the ''Tākitimu'', and lead a migration to New Zealand. It was first roughly shaped at Titirangi hill and then taken to Tamatea's house at Whāngārā, where the carving was completed in an extremely sacred enclosure which was off limits to women and commoners. Tamatea and the

tohunga In the culture of the Māori people, Māori of New Zealand, a tohunga (tōhuka in Southern Māori dialect) is an expert practitioner of any skill or art, either religious or otherwise. Tohunga include expert priests, healers, navigators, carvers, ...

Ruawharo consecrated the ''Tākitimu'' by singing a ''karakia'' which J. H. Mitchell records and pouring a calabash of water over the bow. Then they launched the canoe into the Pikopiki-i-whiti

lagoon A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into ''coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons'') an ...

. After this, it was taken in the night to Te-whetu-Matarau and the tohunga Ruawharo cast various protective spells for the boat, one of which J. H. Mitchell records. The ''Tākitimu'' was too sacred for women, commoners, children, or cooked food to be allowed onto it. Tamatea Arikinui took up the role of captain, sitting at the stern and holding the ceremonial paddles Rapanga-i-te-atinuku and Rapanga-i-te-ati-rangi. The ship travelled to

Rarotonga Rarotonga is the largest and most populous of the Cook Islands. The island is volcanic, with an area of , and is home to almost 75% of the country's population, with 10,898 of a total population of 15,040. The Parliament of the Cook Islands, Coo ...

and from there made the journey from Rarotonga to New Zealand in only eleven days. A shortage of food forced the crew to pray to

Tangaroa Tangaroa (Māori; Takaroa in the South Island dialect; cognate with Tagaloa in Sāmoan) is the great atua of the sea, lakes, rivers, and creatures that live within them, especially fish, in Māori mythology. As Tangaroa-whakamau-tai, he exercis ...

and

Tāne In Māori mythology, Tāne (also called Tāne-mahuta, Tāne-nui-a-Rangi, Tāne-te-waiora and several other names) is the god of forests and of birds, and the son of Rangi and Papa, Ranginui and Rangi and Papa, Papatūānuku, the sky father and th ...

, who provided them with raw fish and birds to eat. The ''Tākitimu'' arrived at

Awanui Awanui is an historical river port in the far north of New Zealand, on the banks of the Awanui River just before it flows into Rangaunu Bay. Awanui lies at the south end of the Aupouri Peninsula in the Far North District Council of the Northlan ...

at the base of the

Aupōuri Peninsula The Aupōuri Peninsula is a tombolo at the northern tip of the North Island of New Zealand. It projects between the Tasman Sea to the west and the Pacific Ocean to the east. It constitutes the northern part of the Far North District, incorpora ...

in Northland. Some members of the crew settled in this location, but Tamatea led most of the crew continued around North Cape, and 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 ...

until they reached

. Here Tamatea left the ''Tākitimu'', entrusting the command to Tahu, whom he instructed to find a source of ''

pounamu Pounamu is a term for several types of hard and durable stone found in the South Island of New Zealand. They are highly valued in New Zealand, and carvings made from pounamu play an important role in Māori culture. Name The Māori word ...

'' or greenstone (nephrite jade). Gardenology

Tamatea settled at Kawhai-nui, now Tauranga. Here he planted a sacred flax plant called Wharawhara-nui, built a '' pa'' called Te Manga-Tawa, and married a local lady. The local people gave him the name Tamatea mai-tawhiti ("Tamatea from a distance") and honoured him. J. H. Mitchell thinks that he found himself "aimless" and without opportunities for further deeds. He died shortly after the birth of his son.

Family

Tamatea married Toto, a descendant of

Toi-te-huatahi Toi-te-huatahi, also known as Toi and Toi-kai-rākau, is a legendary Māori people, Māori ''tupuna'' (ancestor) of many Māori people, Māori iwi (tribes) from the Bay of Plenty area, including Ngāti Awa, Ngāi Te Rangi and Ngāi Tūhoe. The B ...

J. H. Mitchell gives the line of descent as Toi - Rauru - Whatonga - Tahatiti - Rakeiora - Tamaki-te-hau - Tamaki-te-ra - Tamaki-te-matangi - Tama-kireireia-mai-Hawaiki - Te-Kahu-arero - Pito - Rere - Tangi - Maika - Toto. and they had one son, Rongokako, father of Tamatea Urehaea, father of Kahungunu, the eponymous ancestor of Ngāti Kahungunu.

References

Bibliography

* * {{cite encyclopedia , title=Canoe traditions, encyclopedia=Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, year=2005, last=Taonui, first=Rāwiri , url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/canoe-traditions/page-6 , access-date= 14th-century New Zealand people Māori mythology Legendary Polynesian people Legendary progenitors Polynesian maritime navigators Ngāti Kahungunu