'Aho'eitu
Encyclopedia
In Tonga
n mythology
, or oral history
, Ahoeitu is a son of the god Tangaloa Eitumātupua
and a mortal woman, Ilaheva Vaepopua
. He became the first king of the Tui Tonga
(Tonga king) dynasty in the early 10th century, dethroning the previous one with the same name but originating from the uanga (maggots) instead of divine; see Kohai, Koau, mo Momo
.
tree. The lad climbed up, went over the road as his mother had said and found his father catching doves. Eitumātupua was moved to see his son, and invited him to his house for kava
and food. After that he sent him to his other sons, Ahoeitu's older halfbrothers, who were living in the sky, and at that moment playing sika-ulu-toa (a dart throwing game with reeds having a head made from toa wood). When those young men found out that this good-looking boy was their brother, they got jealous, tore him in pieces, cooked him (or did not cook him, according to some sources) and ate him. Except his head, which was thrown in some hoi plants which have become poisonous ever since.
Some time after Eitumātupua sent a woman to fetch Ahoeitu, but she returned with the message that the lad was not to be found. The god demanded his other sons to come and forced them by tickling their throats to vomit in a large wooden bowl. Noticing the head missing, Eitumātupua sent a messenger to find the head and also the bones. Everything was put in the bowl. Water was poured on it and the leaves of the nonufiafia, which is a known medicinal plant, able to revive people who were near death. The bowl then was put behind the house. They visited it from time to time, and at last they found Ahoeitu sitting up.
They all were brought into Eitumātupua's house, and the god spoke angrily to his elder sons that they were murderers and that for punishment they had to stay in the sky, while Ahoeitu would descend to become king of Tonga. But now his older brothers repented and begged their father that they would be allowed to follow him. At last the god gave in, but stipulated that, even though they were older, they would become servants to Ahoeitu.
Ahoeitu's name has been used over the centuries up to today for several other chiefly or royal descendants. The current crown price, for instance, is named Tupoutoa Lavaka (Ahoeitu Unuakiotonga Tukuaho).
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
n mythology
Polynesian mythology
Polynesian mythology is the oral traditions of the people of Polynesia, a grouping of Central and South Pacific Ocean island archipelagos in the Polynesian triangle together with the scattered cultures known as the Polynesian outliers...
, or oral history
Oral history
Oral history is the collection and study of historical information about individuals, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews...
, Ahoeitu is a son of the god Tangaloa Eitumātupua
Tangaloa (Tongan mythology)
Tangaloa was an important family of gods in Tongan mythology. The first Tangaloa was the cousin of Havea Hikuleo and Maui, or in some sources the brother or son or father of them. He was Tangaloa Eiki Tangaloa was an important family of gods in Tongan mythology. The first Tangaloa was the cousin of...
and a mortal woman, Ilaheva Vaepopua
'Ilaheva
In the mythology of Tonga, Ilaheva Vaepopua was a mortal woman, the daughter of Seketoa, who was a chief of Tongatapu, or perhaps a god from Niuatoputapu. Or maybe she the daughter from a Niuē chief. It depends on who told the story...
. He became the first king of the Tui Tonga
Tu'i Tonga
The Tui Tonga is a line of Tongan kings, which originated in the 10th century with the mythical Ahoeitu; withdrew from political power in the 15th century by yielding to the Tui Haatakalaua; and died out with Laufilitonga in 1865...
(Tonga king) dynasty in the early 10th century, dethroning the previous one with the same name but originating from the uanga (maggots) instead of divine; see Kohai, Koau, mo Momo
Kohai, Koau, mo Momo
Kohai , Koau , mo Momo were in the Tongan mythology the first human beings created on earth. They came forth from the uanga...
.
Trip to the sky
When Ahoeitu was growing up he asked his mother about his father. His mother was a human woman from an area now known as Popua near the large lagoon of Tongatapu island. Aho eitu's mother told him that his father was a god living in the sky. When he had grown up he expressed the wish to find him. Ilaheva directed him to the great toaCasuarinaceae
Casuarinaceae is a family of dicotyledonous flowering plants placed in the order Fagales, consisting of 3 or 4 genera and approximately 70 species of trees and shrubs native to the Old World tropics , Australia, and the Pacific Islands...
tree. The lad climbed up, went over the road as his mother had said and found his father catching doves. Eitumātupua was moved to see his son, and invited him to his house for kava
Kava
Kava or kava-kava is a crop of the western Pacific....
and food. After that he sent him to his other sons, Ahoeitu's older halfbrothers, who were living in the sky, and at that moment playing sika-ulu-toa (a dart throwing game with reeds having a head made from toa wood). When those young men found out that this good-looking boy was their brother, they got jealous, tore him in pieces, cooked him (or did not cook him, according to some sources) and ate him. Except his head, which was thrown in some hoi plants which have become poisonous ever since.
Some time after Eitumātupua sent a woman to fetch Ahoeitu, but she returned with the message that the lad was not to be found. The god demanded his other sons to come and forced them by tickling their throats to vomit in a large wooden bowl. Noticing the head missing, Eitumātupua sent a messenger to find the head and also the bones. Everything was put in the bowl. Water was poured on it and the leaves of the nonufiafia, which is a known medicinal plant, able to revive people who were near death. The bowl then was put behind the house. They visited it from time to time, and at last they found Ahoeitu sitting up.
They all were brought into Eitumātupua's house, and the god spoke angrily to his elder sons that they were murderers and that for punishment they had to stay in the sky, while Ahoeitu would descend to become king of Tonga. But now his older brothers repented and begged their father that they would be allowed to follow him. At last the god gave in, but stipulated that, even though they were older, they would become servants to Ahoeitu.
Royal lineage
His older brothers were:- Talafale; he became the Tui Faleua (king of the second house), a spare dynasty in case Ahoeitu's line would ever die out (which apparently has still not happened). He also became the Tui PelehakeTu'ipelehakeThe Tuipelehake is the 2nd highest ranking traditional chiefly title in Tonga, in the absence of the Tui Faleua title, Tuipelehake is second only to the King in rank...
(king rising pet), another very high title. For years Fatafehi kept both titles, but after his death in 1999, only the Tui Pelehake title went to his son, and the Tui Faleua returned to king TāufaāhauTaufa'ahau Tupou IVTāufaāhau Tupou IV, King of Tonga, GCMG, GCVO, KBE, KStJ son of Queen Sālote Tupou III and her consort Prince Viliami Tungī Mailefihi, was the king of Tonga from the death of his mother in 1965 until his own death in 2006...
. - Matakehe; His line ended during the reign of Tui TongaTu'i TongaThe Tui Tonga is a line of Tongan kings, which originated in the 10th century with the mythical Ahoeitu; withdrew from political power in the 15th century by yielding to the Tui Haatakalaua; and died out with Laufilitonga in 1865...
Tu'itatui. He, and his younger brother Tui Folaha were the guardians of the Tui TongaTu'i TongaThe Tui Tonga is a line of Tongan kings, which originated in the 10th century with the mythical Ahoeitu; withdrew from political power in the 15th century by yielding to the Tui Haatakalaua; and died out with Laufilitonga in 1865... - Māliepō; his descendants are now known as Lauaki and they are the royal undertakers.
- Tui Loloko; still exists. He and his younger brother were to govern in the name of their lord.
- Tui Folaha; His line ended during the reign of Tui TongaTu'i TongaThe Tui Tonga is a line of Tongan kings, which originated in the 10th century with the mythical Ahoeitu; withdrew from political power in the 15th century by yielding to the Tui Haatakalaua; and died out with Laufilitonga in 1865...
Tu'itatui. Along with Matakehe, they were the guardians of the Tui TongaTu'i TongaThe Tui Tonga is a line of Tongan kings, which originated in the 10th century with the mythical Ahoeitu; withdrew from political power in the 15th century by yielding to the Tui Haatakalaua; and died out with Laufilitonga in 1865...
Ahoeitu's name has been used over the centuries up to today for several other chiefly or royal descendants. The current crown price, for instance, is named Tupoutoa Lavaka (Ahoeitu Unuakiotonga Tukuaho).