Nareau (

Gilbertese Gilbertese or taetae ni Kiribati, also Kiribati (sometimes ''Kiribatese''), is an Austronesian language spoken mainly in Kiribati. It belongs to the Micronesian branch of the Oceanic languages. The word ''Kiribati'', the current name of the i ...

: "spider lord") is the creator deity in the mythology of the

Gilbert Islands The Gilbert Islands ( gil, Tungaru;Reilly Ridgell. ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia.'' 3rd. Ed. Honolulu: Bess Press, 1995. p. 95. formerly Kingsmill or King's-Mill IslandsVery often, this n ...

. From sand and water, Nareau created two primeval beings,

Na Atibu Na Atibu is a god in the mythology of the Gilbert Islands. The spider god Nareau created Na Atibu and his female counterpart Nei Teukez out of sand and water. A sacred tree called ''kai-n-tiku-aba'' grew from Na Atibu's spine, and men and women g ...

and

Nei Teukez Nei or NEI may refer to: *Nei, Iran, a village in Ardabil Province, Iran *Nei, a character in the ''Phantasy Star II'' roleplaying game *Nutrition and Education International *Nuclear Energy Institute, American nuclear industry lobbying group *N ...

. Together they brought forth several deities: Te Ikawai,

Nei Marena Nei or NEI may refer to: *Nei, Iran, a village in Ardabil Province, Iran *Nei, a character in the ''Phantasy Star II'' roleplaying game *Nutrition and Education International *Nuclear Energy Institute, American nuclear industry lobbying group *N ...

, Te Nao (the wave),

Na Kika NA, N.A., Na, nA or n/a may refer to: Chemistry and physics * Sodium, symbol Na, a chemical element * Avogadro constant (''N''A) * Nucleophilic addition, a type of reaction in organic chemistry * Numerical aperture, a number that characterizes a ...

(the octopus), and Ruki (the eel). Eventually, Na Atibu was torn apart and his body parts became the world. Either Naraeu himself or a younger god with the same name created the sun and moon from Na Atibu's eyes, the stars from his brains, and the land from his bones and flesh.

References

{{Deity-stub Kiribati mythology Micronesian deities Creator gods Mythological spiders