Te Huki
Te Huki was a Māori rangatira (chieftain) of the Ngāti Kahungunu iwi and Ngāti Rakaipaaka hapū from around the Mohaka in northern Hawke Bay, New Zealand. Through a set of marriages, he created a network of connections along the east coast of the North Island, known as Te Kupenga a Te Huki ("the net of Te Huki"). He probably lived in the early eighteenth century.[1]
Life[edit]
Te Huki was the son of Tureia and Hinekimihanga. Through his father, he was a direct male-line descendant of Rakaipaaka, and through both parents of Kahungunu and Tamatea Arikinui, who captained the Takitimu waka from Hawaiki to New Zealand.[2] He had two younger sisters, Te Rauhina, who married her cousin Tapuwae, and Te Rangimokai, who married Te Hikawera.[3]
Te Huki was originally based in the area along the coast of Hawke Bay between Waihua and Mohaka, which is known after him as Ngā Ngaru a Te Huki ("the waves of Te Huki").[4] Through a succession of marriages, Te Huki established a network of connections that extended along the east coast of the North Island from Tūranganui-a-Kiwa to Wairarapa, which was known as Te Kupenga a Te Huki ("the net of Te Huki").[5] The southern "post" of the net was his grandson Ngarangi-whakaupoko, whom he installed at Te Poroporo, near Pōrangahau; the eastern "post" was his grandson Ngā-whaka-tātare, at Whāngārā; and the centre "float" was his son Puruaute.[4] J.H. Mitchell reports that Te Huki's three wives all remained in their areas of origin, while he travelled between them. This made him popular with his in-laws' peoples and ensured that they supported his children as leaders.[6] Other reports say that his first wife, Te Rangitohumare, settled with him at Wairoa.[7]
Te Huki was attacked, killed, and eaten by Te Whānau-ā-Apanui, while crossing the Te Arai River on his way to visit his third wife at Tītīrangi in Tūranganui-a-Kiwa. This murder was avenged by his cousin Te-O-Tane and his grandson Te Kahu-o-te-Rangi at the Battle of Whāwhāpō.[6]
Family[edit]
Te Huki's first marriage was to Te Rangitohumare, daughter of Te Hikawera and had three sons and a daughter:[6][8]
- Puruaute (son), the centre "post" of Te Huki's net, who was settled in the Wairoa region and married Te Matakainga-i-te-tihi, the senior child of Tapuwae. They had three sons:[9]
- Te Kapuamatotoru, father of Te Ruruku, ancestor of Ngāi te Ruruku[10]
- Mātaitai, ancestor of Īhaka Whaanga.
- Te Kahu-o-te-Rangi, ancestor of Ngāti Pahauwera[8]
- Mātaitai (son).[6]
- Hineraru (daughter), who married Hōpara of Pōrangahau:
- Ngārangi-whaka-ūpoko, the southern "post" of Te Huki's net.
- Te Hauwaitanoa (son)
Te Huki's second wife was Te Rōpūhina, a chieftainess of Nūhaka:[6]
- Te Rākatō (son), who settled on the Māhia Peninsula and was ancestor of Ngāi Te Rākatō
- Tūreia (son), who settled at Nūhaka
- Te Rehu (son), who settled at Nūhaka and was ancestor of Ngāi Te Rehu
Te Huki's third wife was Rewanga, daughter of Te Aringa-i-waho, chief of Tītīrangi:[11]
- Te Kainui
- Te Umupapa (daughter), who married Marukawiti, son of Kanohi:
- Ngā-whaka-tātare-o-te-rangi, the eastern "post" of Te Huki's net and ancestor of Te Kani-a-Takirau.
According to J. H. Mitchell, only descendants of Te Huki and his brother-in-law Tapuwae are traditionally considered to be aristocrats among the Ngāti Kahungunu of the Wairoa area.[12]
References[edit]
- ^ Walker 2014.
- ^ Mitchell 2014, p. 143 gives the line of descent from Kahungunu as: Te Huki - Tūreia - Tutekanao - Kaukohea - Rakaipaaka - Kahukuranui - Kahungunu.
- ^ Parsons 1997, p. 60.
- ^ a b Mitchell 2014, p. 144.
- ^ Mitchell 2014, p. 143.
- ^ a b c d e Mitchell 2014, p. 145.
- ^ Parsons 1997, p. 130.
- ^ a b Parsons 1997, pp. 127–132.
- ^ Mitchell 2014, p. 146.
- ^ Parsons 1997, p. 138.
- ^ Mitchell 2014, pp. 144–145.
- ^ Mitchell 2014, p. 118.
Bibliography[edit]
- Mitchell, J. H. (2014). Takitimu: A History of Ngati Kahungunu. Libro International. ISBN 978-1-877514-72-2.
- Parsons, Patrick (1997). WAI 400: The Ahuriri Block: Maori Cusomary Interests (PDF). Retrieved 10 July 2022.
- Taonui, Rāwiri. "Whakapapa – genealogy - What is whakapapa?". Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
- Walker, Wananga Te Ariki (27 January 2014). "Te Kupenga-a-Te Huki – Te Huki's Net". Nga Maunga Korero. Retrieved 21 February 2024.