polynesia

Approximate settlement date of Tonga and Samoa

Between 1000 BCE and 800 BCE by ancestral Lapita voyagers.

Approximate settlement timeframe of New Zealand (Aotearoa)

Between 1250 CE and 1300 CE, completing the primary eastward migration.

Approximate settlement date of Rapa Nui (Easter Island)

Around 1200 CE by eastern Polynesian navigators.

Wayfinding

A traditional open-ocean navigation system using observations of celestial bodies, wave swells, wind directions, and bird flight paths without instruments.

Waka hourua

Double-hulled voyaging canoes engineered with sails and central platforms capable of carrying settlements across thousands of kilometers of open ocean.

Ariki (or Ali'i)

The hereditary high chiefs who occupied the top of the social hierarchy, possessing the highest degree of inherited authority and political rule.

Tohunga (or Kahuna)

The priest and expert class comprising master navigators, healers, builders, and spiritual advisors.

Commoner class in Polynesian society

Farmers, fishermen, and craftspeople who cultivated the land, gathered food, and provided tribute to supporting chiefs.

Polynesian Triangle

The expansive Pacific geographic zone bound by Hawaii to the north, Rapa Nui to the southeast, and New Zealand (Aotearoa) to the southwest.

Major island groups of western and central Polynesia

Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, the Cook Islands, and the Society Islands.

ADAMA source analysis method

A historical analysis framework that evaluates five core components of a source: Author, Date, Audience, Message, and Agenda (or Aim).

The "Agenda" element in the ADAMA source analysis method

The underlying purpose, motive, or bias that influenced why the creator produced the source.

Tatau

A traditional Polynesian hand-tapped body art practice signifying social status, heritage, and rites of passage.

Tā moko

The traditional Māori practice of carving sacred, personalized patterns into the skin, predominantly on the face, reflecting lineage and rank.

Iwi

The largest political unit in traditional Māori society, consisting of a confederation of related clans tracing descent to a common ancestor.

Hapū

Māori sub-tribes that functioned as the primary community units responsible for daily governance, defense, and economic tasks.

Whānau

The extended family network that served as the foundational social and economic unit of Māori daily life.

Mana

Spiritual prestige, authority, sacred power, and influence inherited through noble lineage and expanded through heroic deeds.

Tapu

A system of sacred restrictions and spiritual prohibitions designed to protect individuals, sacred spaces, and natural resources.

Moai

Colossal stone statues carved from volcanic rock on Rapa Nui to embody and preserve ancestral spiritual power.

Ahu

Raised stone ceremonial platforms built primarily along the coastline of Rapa Nui to support monumental ancestral statues facing inland.

Rano Raraku

The volcanic crater on Rapa Nui that served as the primary quarry where almost all monolithic stone statues were carved.