Mythology
Polynesia
In the Pacific Ocean, thousands of islands were reached by Polynesian navigators, who travelled in large canoes by reading the stars. From Hawaii to New Zealand people tell similar stories, like those of the hero Māui, but each island has its own. These are living traditions, like the Māori tradition of New Zealand and the Hawaiian one: we tell of them with respect and only with public information, because some stories belong to families and tribes alone.
A living religious tradition: its deities are described with respect, as revered figures. How we tell myths.
Who they were, where, and how we know
The Polynesians are the great navigators of the Pacific: with outrigger canoes and no instruments they reached far-off islands, from Hawaii to New Zealand (Aotearoa) to Tahiti and Samoa. Their stories speak of the sea, of volcanoes and of the stars that guided their routes.
They had no writing: myths passed from voice to voice, in songs, dances and genealogies. They were written down mostly from the 19th century on, by missionaries, scholars and local storytellers: for example George Grey's collection («Polynesian Mythology», 1855) on the Maori. Versions change from island to island.
The gods have slightly different names depending on the island: Tangaroa (Kanaloa in Hawaii) is the god of the sea, Tane of forests, Pele the goddess of the volcano. And there is Maui, the clever hero who fishes up islands with a magic hook and slows the sun.
The cards
MāuiAotearoa (New Zealand) and Hawaii · trickster hero not scary at all
PeleKīlauea, Hawaii · goddess of volcanoes a little scary
Rangi and PapaAotearoa (New Zealand) · sky and earth not scary at all
Tangaroathe whole Pacific Ocean · sea deity not scary at all
HinaHawaii, Tahiti and New Zealand · woman of the moon not scary at all
The MenehuneKauaʻi, Hawaii · little builders not scary at all
Taniwhathe rivers, lakes and seas of Aotearoa · guardians of the waters a little scary
TikiAotearoa and the Pacific islands · the first man not scary at all
KanaloaHawaii · Hawaiian deity of the ocean not scary at all
Tānethe forests of Aotearoa · deity of forests and birds not scary at all
Hine-nui-te-pōRarohenga, the world below · lady of the night scaryWho comes from whom
Tap a name: its parents and children light up. Names with a medallion open their card (with a finger: tap them twice).
Places of the myths
- Aotearoa
- the Māori name for New Zealand, the “land of the long white cloud”.
- Kīlauea
- the Hawaiian volcano where Pele lives.
- Hawaiki
- the legendary homeland from which the Polynesian canoes set out.
- Waipoua Forest
- in New Zealand, home of Tāne Mahuta, the country's largest kauri tree, which bears the name of the deity of the forests.
Main sources
- George Grey, Polynesian Mythology (1855)
- Martha Beckwith, Hawaiian Mythology (1940)
- Te Ara, the Encyclopedia of New Zealand
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Who's behind this
Ciro Simone Irmici
I build websites, apps and games. I built the Atlas with artificial intelligence and I check every card and every source myself. I am not a scholar of mythology: I tell these legends with respect and always say where they come from. If you know a legend from your town, write to me.
More of my work: free audiobooks on YouTube · ebooks on Gumroad · Apple Books · music on Spotify and YouTube Music