Te Haerenga waka : Polynesian origins, migrations and navigation

Abstract

This thesis investigates Polynesian origins, migrations, and navigation. The main issues it examines are the questions of where the ancestors of the Polynesians came from, and how they managed to settle the islands of Polynesia. The second question is itself twofold. Firstly there is the matter of the sequence and time that settlement occurred, and secondly there is the debate about whether or not settlement occurred as the result of accidental or deliberately navigated voyages. Before beginning this project I had no experience, expertise, or knowledge in the fields of astronomy, archaeology, ethnobotany, ethnozoology, navigation, Pacific meteorology, and Polynesian geography. Nor was I familiar with the oral traditions of the islands of polynesia or the records of early European observers in the Pacific. My sole preparation was that I had some experience in researching Maori tribal tradition. I endeavoured to learn as much as I could beginning in March 1994, and also hoped that I could produce a thesis before February 28th 1995.