The Voyaging History of
Aotearoa
The Voyaging History of
Aotearoa
Along with modern dating methods that are able to identify the latest possible settlement periods, this timeline draws on the mātauranga (knowledge), kōrero tuku iho (oral transmissions) and whakapapa (genealogical lines) passed down by 19th-century Polynesian teachers and experts. These tohunga were the last of their kind. Assisted by the careful note taking, record keeping and cross-referencing carried out by missionaries, surveyors, ethnographers and anthropologists such as Reverend John Bettridge Stair, John Francis Grey Stokes and Abraham Fornander, the sacred knowledge of Polynesian elders including Te Ariki Tara’are, Matatia, Mamoe, Mamoe Fafine and others is available to us today.
Many ancient genealogical tables throughout the Pacific and Aotearoa are strikingly consistent, despite being passed on to various European ethnologists at different times, in different Pacific nations by different Polynesian experts. The whakapapa table used on this timeline was recorded by the Reverend John Bettridge Stair. With more scope, a combination of genealogical lines would ideally be placed on a table to allow for ease of cross-referencing. One of the limitations of theories that are not founded upon genealogical lines is that, for example, if Tamatea Arikinui and his crew arrived in Aotearoa in the 13th century onboard the Takitimu waka, how did their ancestors such as Toi Te Huatahi, who, according to Samaon genealogical lines, lived 12 generations (approximately 300 years) beforehand and Maui who preceded Toi by around 6 generations (approximately 150 years) all arrive in the same period? Consequently key members of many New Zealanders' family lines such as Whatonga, Toi Te Huatahi, Kupe and Maui are often relegated to the realm of myth and legend in order to accommodate theories that exclude pre-colonial Mātauranga Māori and Pasifika.
Reverend John Bettridge Stair served in his role at a pivotal time when Polynesian traditions, languages and histories in their purest forms, were at risk of being diluted and lost as foreign values, teachings and cultures set in. “... from the very first, I felt great interest in Samoa and the Samoans, and endeavored on every occasion to collect data and memoranda bearing upon their past history and customs, as well as conditions of life, knowing full well that such facts might soon be difficult to obtain”
For 7 years between 1838 and 1845 Reverend John Bettridge Stair served as a missionary in Samoa. He dedicated his time between missionary duties and documenting the histories, genealogies and traditions of the Samoan and Rarotongan people. Stair took advantage of the access that being a missionary gave him. He used his position to record some of the deeper details relating to the traditions, genealogies and knowledge of the people. In his own words “A resident missionary occupies strong vantage-ground over transitory visitors in collecting facts and data concerning a people among whom he dwells, and I always felt it my duty to avail myself of any opportunity to collect such knowledge as far as I could consistently with my regular missionary duties”. Stair had the additional advantage of returning to his home in England taking with him an Ali'i (Chief) from Samoa named Mamoe and his wife Mamoe Fafine. “The valuable information which I thus obtained was subsequently supplemented, on my return to England in 1846, by a native Samoan chief, Mamoe, and his wife, Mamoe fafine, who were domiciled in my family. They were both of high rank, and well informed, as well as fully conversant with Samoan native customs and traditional lore”
Abraham Fornander was a Swedish ethnologist who was made a Judge and the Inspector General of Schools within the Kingdom of Hawaii by King Kamehameha V. Fornander was known and despised for placing an emphasis on justice for the Native Hawaiian people and for his commitment to the Hawaiian language and historical records. Fornander compared Polynesian languages, mythology, and genealogies to highlight the consistency and accuracy of Polynesian oral traditions. Fornander applied a value of 30 years per generation to place people and events on a timeline.
John Francis Grey Stokes, born in Newcastle, New South Wales in 1875, was a renowned archaeologist and historian. In 1903 he was appointed Curator of Polynesian Ethnology at the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum in Hawaii where he became the first historian to use modern surveying techniques incorporating photography in the documentation of places of significance within Hawaii with an emphasis on archaeological sites such as heiau (monumental temple sites). The materials he helped produce under the guidance of Kanaka Maoli (indigenous Hawaiian experts) now serve as an important educational resource.
The following genealogical comparisons, observations, and calculations were made by the editors of an 1895 publication called “Old Samoa, Flotsam and Jetsam. Samoan Geniologies and Early Records. The History of the Peopling of Rarotonga, With the Genealogy of the People of Samoa, whence they sprang” by Rev. John Bettridge Stair:
“Polynesian scholars will notice in this genealogy that Mr. Stair's native historian has given many of the names in their Samoan form, others in their Rarotongan form. A native of Rarotonga after dwelling some time in Samoa would be likely to do this. The attention of Maori scholars is drawn to Nos. 65, 67, 68 (on the timeline): Tai (Toi), Ra-ulu (Rauru), and Atonga (Whatonga). Three very celebrated ancestors of the people found in New Zealand on the arrival of the fleet of canoes twenty or twenty-one generations ago were Toi, Rauru, and Whatonga, which occur exactly in the above order, i.e., Whatonga was a grandson of Toi. According to Rarotonga history, Tangiia, No. 73 on the list, flourished about twenty-four generations ago, therefore Atonga (No. 68) lived about twenty-nine generations ago. According to Maori genealogies, Whatonga lived about twenty-seven or twenty-eight generations ago. It would seem from this that the three names given are identical, and known both to Rarotongans and Maoris, and that they are ancestors common to both peoples."
There are also dating methods independent of these Polynesian and Māori oral traditions that can be useful for identifying the latest possible discovery and settlement periods in Aotearoa New Zealand.
"A broad range of evidence including radiocarbon dating, analysis of pollen and volcanic ash, DNA evidence, genealogical dating and studies of animal extinction and decline suggests that New Zealand’s first permanent settlers were established between 1250 and 1300" (https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/encounters/polynesian-voyaging)
"There is a lot of evidence that Polynesian people first arrived in New Zealand around 1250–1300 CE, coming from East Polynesia in canoes" (https://teara.govt.nz/en/when-was-new-zealand-first-settled)
"The Māori people of Aotearoa (New Zealand) are descendants of Polynesian peoples who had arrived by 1300 AD. While there is considerable debate about the precise date and the number of vessels, it is now believed that during the late 1200s a number of ocean-going waka (canoes) made their way from east Polynesia, to land at various points on the coast of New Zealand" (https://teara.govt.nz/en/maori/page-2)