Hinemihi was a Māori woman of Ngāti Awa from Whakatāne in the Bay of Plenty, who married Tū-te-tawhā of Ngāti Tūwharetoa from the southern part of Lake Taupō, New Zealand. She is the ancestor of the Ngāti Hinemihi hapu of Ngāti Tūwharetoa. Te Ponanga saddle between Lake Taupō and

Lake Rotoaira Lake Rotoaira (sometimes written ''Lake Roto-aira'') is a small lake to the south of Lake Taupō on the North Island Volcanic Plateau in New Zealand. It covers an area of 13 km². Lake Rotoaira is one of the few privately owned lakes in New Z ...

is named for an incident in her life. She probably lived in the seventeenth century.

Life

Hinemihi grew up at Whakatāne on the Bay of Plenty. She had one brother, Tū-hereua, an elder sister called Hine-aro, and a younger sister called Te Aki-pare.

Te Ponanga-o-te-hei-o-Hinemihi

One day, Hinemihi's sister Hine-aro came to Whakatāne along with a group of Ngāti Kurapoto, bringing ''huahua'' (cooked birds, preserved in their own fat). This was Hinemihi's favourite food, but when she tried to eat some, her brother Tū-hereua grabbed her hand and said "If you like ''huahua'' so much, why don’t you go to Taupō and marry Tū-te-tawhā!” Hine-aro and the Ngāti Kurapoto took Hinemihi and a third sister, Te Akipare, back to Ōpepe, where Hine-aro lived with her husband Pakira of Ngāti Poto. From there, Hinemihi asked to visit Tū-te-tawhā, travelling until she reached the high point of the pass between Lake Taupō and Lake Rotoaira. There she made herself up, in order to make the best impression on Tū-te-tawhā. She combed her hair, put on a ''korohunga'' (a cloak with a decorated border) and a ''paepaeroa'' (a fine cloak with tāniko borders). Then she doused herself in tarata,

tāwhiri ''Pittosporum tenuifolium'' is a small evergreen tree endemic to New Zealand – up to – commonly known as and black matipo, and by other Māori names and . Its small, very dark, reddish-purple flowers generally go unnoticed, and are scented ...

, mokimoki, taramea, and tītoki perfumes. Finally, she placed an

albatross Albatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large seabirds related to the procellariids, storm petrels, and diving petrels in the order Procellariiformes (the tubenoses). They range widely in the Southern Ocean and the North Pacifi ...

feather behind her ear and a white heron feather called Te Rau-o-Tītapu (“the feather of the bellbird”) in her hair. The place where she did this was henceforth known as Te Ponanga-o-te-hei-o-Hinemihi ("The Binding of the Necklace of Hinemihi"). From there she went on to Tū-te-tawhā's village and as she approached the people cried out, comparing her to the famous beauty Te Au-o-Karewa, and Tū-te-tawhā married her immediately. Shortly after this, she and Tū-te-tawhā resettled from Lake Rotoaira, to the Karangahape cliffs at the south end of Lake Taupō, due to disagreements with

Ngāti Whitikaupeka Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori roughly means "people" or "nation", and is often translated as "tribe", or "a confederation of tribes". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, an ...

, and Tū-te-tawhā built a fortress on Motuwhara Island. Tū-te-tawhā subsequently defeated the Ngāti Whitikaupeka at the Battle of Uwhiuwhi-hiawai, with the help of Hinemihi's brother Tū-hereua. Lemonwood leaves in evening light.jpg, Tarata Pittosporum tenuifolium kz12.jpg,

Tāwhiri ''Pittosporum tenuifolium'' is a small evergreen tree endemic to New Zealand – up to – commonly known as and black matipo, and by other Māori names and . Its small, very dark, reddish-purple flowers generally go unnoticed, and are scented ...

Dendroconche scandens, Fern House (Christchurch Botanic Gardens), New Zealand 04.jpg, Mokimoki Aciphylla colensoi Skippers Canyon.JPG, Taramea AlectryonExcelsus.jpg, Tītoki Diomedea sanfordi - SE Tasmania.jpg, Toroa (albatross) Kotuku_·_Rina_Sjardin-Thompson_WCSW.jpg, white heron

Family

Hinemihi and Tū-te-tawhā had three sons and one daughter: * Te Rangi-ita, ancestor of the

Ngāti Te Rangiita Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori roughly means "people" or "nation", and is often translated as " tribe", or "a confederation of tribes". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, ...

hapu * Tuara-kino * Parapara-hika * Turu-makina, the ancestor of Ngāti Turumakina, who married her cousin Tukino, grandson of Hinemihi's brother Tū-hereua and was the ancestor of

Herea Te Heuheu Tukino I ''Herea'' is a genus of moths in the subfamily Arctiinae. The genus was erected by Francis Walker in 1854. Species * '' Herea abdominalis'' Gaede, 1926 * '' Herea metaxanthus'' Walker, 1854 * '' Herea prittwitzi'' Möschler, 1872 * '' Herea ...

Ngāti Hinemihi

The Ngāti Hinemihi hapu of Ngāti Tūwharetoa is descended from Hinemihi. It currently makes use of three marae: *Kauriki Marae, with the wharenui Te Ōhākī, in Ngāpuke, which is shared with Ngāti Turumakina, * Maniaiti Marae (Wallace Pā), with the wharenui Te Aroha o Ngā Mātua Tūpuna, which is shared with Ngāti Manunui, * Petania Marae with the wharenui Hinemihi near Taringamotu, which is shared with the Ngāti Maniapoto hapū of Hinemihi, Parewaeono and Rōrā

References

Bibliography

* * * *{{cite journal , last1=McCallum-Haire , first1=Hermione , last2=Te Nana , first2=Rihi , last3=Gallagher , first3=Joanne , title=Hihiko O Mangarautawhiri: Power Sovereignty for a Prosperous Whānau and Hapū , journal=Scope: Contemporary Research Topics (Kaupapa Kai Tahu) , date=2021 , issue=6 , pages=33–43 , doi=10.34074/scop.2006011, s2cid=244679019 , doi-access=free Ngāti Awa people Ngāti Tūwharetoa people New Zealand Māori women 17th-century New Zealand people People from Whakatāne