The Mangaians have an unusual legend of their early history. Most Polynesian islands have some sort of legend about a great ancestor arriving on a fantastic canoe, but not the Mangaians. Nobody sailed from anywhere to become Mangaia's first settler. Rangi, Mokoiro and Akatauira, the three sons of the god Rongo, father of Mangaia, simply lifted the island up from the deep, becoming its first settlers and the ancestors of the Nga Ariki tribe.
The traditional name of the island was A'u A'u (literally 'terraced' - named for the 'steps' of the makatea), short for A'u A'u Nui o Rongo ki te Ao Marama (Big Terraced Land of Rongo in the World of Daylight).
The island's current name is comparatively new; it is short for a name bestowed by Tamaeu, an Aitutakian who arrived on Mangaia in 1775. Mangaia means 'Peace' or 'Temporal Power' - the name relates to 42 battles between the island's various groups and the peace that was finally established when one leader eventually achieved mangaia (power) over the whole island.
In 1900 the Cook Islands and Niue were annexed by Britain and their inhabitants became British subjects. The following year the islands became New Zealand territory. Though both territories later gained a measure of independence, Cook Islanders and Niueans still enjoy the rights of New Zealand citizens. In a ceremony at Mangaia in the Cook Islands in October 1900, Lord Ranfurly, the governor of New Zealand, read the proclamation of annexation and the Union Jack was raised.
Traditions and place names from Polynesia
Some name clusters have been translocated without corresponding legends or traditions. For instance, Rarotonga’s Atiu island and Ahuahu (an early name for Mangaia) are repeated in New Zealand’s Atiu and Ahuahu in the Mercury Islands group.
From Polynesia to New Zealand
Linguistics and archaeology suggest that the Society Islands, or Mangaia in the Cook Islands, may have been the source of the kūmara varieties brought to New Zealand. Hue Hue (bottle gourds) were once believed to have originated in South America. But DNA research in the early …
Part of story: Ngā tupu mai i Hawaiki – plants from Polynesia
of gourd. Radiocarbon dates for kūmara found on Mangaia in the southern Cook Islands show that Polynesians had reached South America and returned by 1000 AD. Vikings and Polynesians According to Icelandic sagas, Vikings from Greenland found Labrador and briefly …
Part of story: Pacific migrations
Māori and industrial unions
and Māhia Peninsula on the East Coast, and with immigrants from Mangaia in the Cook Islands. Some Māori freezing workers became delegates to local trades councils, particularly the Gisborne Trades Council, where Wai Hamon and Rangi Paenga worked on …
Part of story: Ngā uniana – Māori and the union movement http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/search/teara?keys=mangaia
Mangaia historical artifact
Mangaia toki
University of Glasgow - The adze is a tool used for carving or smoothing wood. It exists in cultures across the world and dates back to the Stone Age. Its head, often made of stone, with the sharp working edge is mounted perpendicular to the handle. An adze is also used for ceremonial purposes.
This example from Mangaia, the most southerly of the Cook Islands, has an intricately carved wooden handle, elaborate coir binding and stone blade. It is believed to have taken the form of a god image in Cook Islands Māori culture.
Maker: not known
Materials: wood; stone; coir (coconut fibre)
Dimensions: approx. 755mm
Mangaia Island on google map
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Babes Place
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Travel books Cook Island
Product Description
Lonely Planet: The world's leading travel guide publisher
Okay, so you can get around on lots of the Pacific islands with just English or French, but pack a little of the local languages and you'll be able to go beyond the 'one umbrella or two?'.
Customer Reviews
Mostly culture, but a good practical guide to the languages as wellBy Michael A. Duvernois
Yes, most of this thin book consists of cultural information for the South Pacific islands with just a scattering of common words and phrases in the dialects of each island. But this is just about perfect for the individual traveling from island to island. You're not going to learn the whole language, but you'll get phrases, and the phrases and phrases will be similar from island to island, but not exactly the same. And the locals will often speak a little French or English depending on where you are, and a little bit of the local pidgin. Think of folks on a cruising yacht, or Paul Theroux during his Happy Isles of Oceania writing phase.
A great little book for the island hopper. Pick up something more specific if you want to learn some, for example, Samoan.
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With 10 authors hitting the islands everywhere from the Solomons to Pitcairn and Easter Island, Lonely Planet's South Pacific is more comprehensive and more rigorously researched than any other guidebook. See inside for the real story on tropical beaches, island resorts, blue lagoons and friendly Pacific cultures.
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Historical photos of Mangaia Island  Loading of canoes, Mangaia, Cook Islands
Ref: 1/2-144855-F
Loading canoes at Mangaia, Cook Islands. Date and photographer unknown.
Quantity: 1 b&w original negative(s).
Loading of canoes, Mangaia, Cook Islands. Ref: 1/2-144855-F. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand.http://natlib.govt.nz/records/23120328
 Artifacts from Mangaia, Cook Islands
Ref: PA1-o-1239-068
Artifacts, including stone adzes and a peace drum, from the island of Mangaia, Cook Islands, taken, probably in the 1900s, by an unknown photographer. A Maori carving may be seen in the centre foreground.
Inscriptions: Inscribed - Album page - beneath image: Axes and peace drum of Mangaia.
Physical Description: Gelatin silver print 14.7 x 20.4 mounted on album page
Use/Reproduction: []
Access restrictions: Not restricted
Part of: Craig, Elsdon Walter Grant, 1917-1980 :Photographs / Walter Edward Gudgeon - Cook Islands album.
Artifacts from Mangaia, Cook Islands. Craig, Elsdon Walter Grant, 1917-1980 :Photographs. Ref: PA1-o-1239-068. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/23046565
Cook Islanders from Mangaia Island, Cook Islands
Ref: PAColl-8066-08-12-2
Cook Islanders from Mangaia Island, circa 190-s. Photograph taken in the Cook Islands by an unidentified photographer.
Quantity: 1 b&w original photographic print(s).
Physical Description: Silver gelatin print, 8.6 x 13.7 cm (Postcard)
Access restrictions: Not restricted
Part of: Craig, Elsdon Walter Grant, 1917-1980 :Photographs / Postcards of Pacific islands and Maori.
Cook Islanders from Mangaia Island, Cook Islands. Craig, Elsdon Walter Grant, 1917-1980 :Photographs. Ref: PAColl-8066-08-12-2. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/23018074
 Richard John Seddon with King John and Queen, Mangaia, Cook Islands.
Ref: 1/2-C-16083-F
Prime Minister Richard John Seddon with the King John and Queen, Mangaia, Cook Islands. Taken by Frederick Sears in 1900.
Quantity: 1 b&w original negative(s).
Sears, Frederick W, fl 1890s-1900s. Richard John Seddon with King John and Queen, Mangaia, Cook Islands. Ref: 1/2-C-16083-F. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/22877794
 Group from the Island of Mangaia, Cook Islands, in traditional dress, with gods Vari and Tane Kiao, Cook Islands.
Group from the Island of Mangaia, Cook Islands, in traditional dress, with gods Vari (largest figure), and Tane Kiao (unidentified). Photograph taken in the Cook Islands between 1900 and the 1940s by an unidentified photographer.
Inscriptions: Inscribed - Album page - beneath image: Mangaians in ancient dress with old-time gods Vari, the largest figure, and Tane Kiao.
Quantity: 1 b&w original photographic print(s).
Physical Description: Silver gelatin print, 15 x 19.7 cm, on album page.
Group from the Island of Mangaia, Cook Islands, in traditional dress, with gods Vari and Tane Kiao, Cook Islands. AFCM :Six albums containing newspaper and magazine clippings, and some original photographs. Ref: PA1-f-126-06-1. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/23064128
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