(also ;
often known simply as ) was one of the great
ocean-going, voyaging canoes () that was used in the migrations that settled the
South Island
The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...
according to
Māori tradition.
is linked to many southern , first landing near
Nelson
Nelson may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey
* ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers
* ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...
. The was captained by
Rākaihautū
Rākaihautū was the captain of the canoe () and a Polynesian ancestor of various , most famously of Waitaha and other southern groups, though he is also known in the traditions of Taitokerau, and in those of Rarotonga.
In Māori traditions ...
, who was accompanied by his wife Waiariki-o-āio, their son Te Rakihouia, and a man named Matiti.
Origins
Originally, was said to belong to a chief from
Te Patunuioāio named Taitewhenua.
He decided to give the canoe to the renowned (
astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, natural satellite, moons, comets and galaxy, g ...
) Matiti, who then gave it to Rākaihautū and encouraged him to use it to explore new lands.
In the 9th century,
[ Rākaihautū, accompanied by his wife Waiariki-o-āio, their son Te Rakihouia, Matiti,][ and other kin of the Te Kāhui Tipua, Te Kāhui Roko, and Te Kāhui Waitaha tribes, set sail across the ]Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
in search of new land.[
]
Voyage and arrival
On the journey to the South Island the heavens and the ocean blocked the canoe's path, until Rākaihautū chanted a and cut a passage with his adze
An adze (; alternative spelling: adz) is an ancient and versatile cutting tool similar to an axe but with the cutting edge perpendicular to the handle rather than parallel. Adzes have been used since the Stone Age. They are used for smoothing ...
, Kapakitua.Boulder Bank
The Boulder Bank (Māori: ''Te Taero a Keropa'' or ''Te Tāhuna o Tama-i-ea'') is a very unusual naturally formed landform in Nelson, New Zealand. It is a 13 kilometre long stretch of rocky substrate which begins at the Mackay Bluff and ends a ...
,[ Nelson, at the top of the South Island.]Southern Alps
The Southern Alps (; officially Southern Alps / Kā Tiritiri o te Moana) is a mountain range extending along much of the length of New Zealand's South Island, reaching its greatest elevations near the range's western side. The name "Southern ...
down to Foveaux Strait
The Foveaux Strait, (, or , ) separates Stewart Island, New Zealand's third largest island, from the South Island. The strait is about 130 km long (from Ruapuke Island to Little Solander Island), and it widens (from 14 km at Ruapuk ...
, digging out the island's great lakes and waterways as he went.Kaikōura
Kaikōura () is a town on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It is located on State Highway 1, 180 km north of Christchurch. The town has an estimated permanent resident population of (as of ).
The town is the government ...
(The Food Storehouse of Rakihouia) and eventually finding a lake at Banks Peninsula
Banks Peninsula is a peninsula of volcanic origin on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It has an area of approximately and encompasses two large harbours and many smaller bays and coves. The South Island's largest cit ...
now called Lake Ellesmere / Te Waihora
Lake Ellesmere / Te Waihora is a broad, shallow coastal lake or waituna, in the Canterbury region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is directly to the west of Banks Peninsula, separated from the Pacific Ocean by the long, narrow, sandy ...
, naming its coastline (The Eel Weirs Of Te Rakihouia).Clutha River
The Clutha River (, officially gazetted as Clutha River / ) is the second longest river in New Zealand and the longest in the South Island. It flows south-southeast through Central and South Otago from Lake Wānaka in the Southern Alps to the P ...
, which they named (or ).[ meeting at Waihao, near the ]Waitaki River
The Waitaki River is a large braided river that drains the Mackenzie Basin and runs some south-east to enter the Pacific Ocean between Timaru and Oamaru on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It starts at the confluence of the ...
where the canoe now makes up part of the riverbed at Wai Kakahi (near Glenavy
Glenavy () is a village and civil parish in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, 17 kilometres north west of Lisburn on the banks of the Glenavy River. In the 2011 Census it had a population of 5,697 people. In early documents it was known as Lena ...
).
See also
* List of Māori waka
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby union ...
*
*
Notes
References
External links
Terea te Waka
a chant that recalls the voyage of the
{{Waka nav
Māori mythology
Māori waka