Uenuku facts for kids

Uenuku is a special god of rainbows in Māori stories. He is also a very important ancestor for many Māori tribes. The name Uenuku simply means 'rainbow'.

Uenuku is especially important to the Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Porou, Ngāi Tahu, and Ngāi Tūhoe Māori tribes. Other groups like Kurahaupō, Tainui, and Te Arawa tribes also know about him. For some tribes, he is also seen as a god of war.

In 1974, Geoff Murphy made a movie based on Uenuku's story. It was the first TV drama ever made completely in the Māori language.

Uenuku: A Great Ancestor

Many tribes, including Ngāti Porou, Ngāi Tahu, and Ngāti Kahungunu, believe Uenuku was a powerful chief from a place called Hawaiki. They say he was their ancestor and had about 70 sons.

One of his sons, Ruatapu, caused a big problem. He felt embarrassed after trying to use a special, sacred comb. Because of this, he caused a disaster that affected many important people in Hawaiki.

In stories from the Te Arawa tribes, Tamatekapua and his brother Whakaturia once took fruit from Chief Uenuku of Hawaiki without permission.

In the Cook Islands, there is an important ancestor named Uanuku Rakeiora. He is said to have come from Raiatea Island in French Polynesia many generations ago.

The Story of Uenuku and Hine-pūkohu-rangi

Many Māori tribes, especially Ngāi Tūhoe, Ngāpuhi, and Ngāti Kahungunu, tell a beautiful story about Uenuku. In this story, Uenuku was once a human. One morning, he was out hunting when he met two women in a forest clearing.

One woman was named Hine-pūkohu-rangi, and her sister was Hine-wai. Uenuku asked Hine-pūkohu-rangi to stay and talk with him. She agreed to meet him again the next night. She lived in the sky and had to leave him at dawn when her sister Hine-wai called her.

They met every night and fell in love. Hine-pūkohu-rangi agreed to marry Uenuku, but only if he promised not to tell anyone about her.

Rainbow in the evening sun at The Remarkables. Uenuku is a Māori god of rainbows.

They were very happy for many months. Hine-pūkohu-rangi still only came to him at night and left at dawn. After some time, she became pregnant.

However, no one else could see her. People around Uenuku started to make fun of him. They were suspicious of this wife they had never seen, and of the daughter who was sometimes said to be already born. Uenuku tried to explain that his wife left him every morning at first light.

His friends suggested he block the doors and windows so she could not see the sun. After more teasing, Uenuku was convinced to block the sunlight. He wanted to prove his wife was real. That night, Uenuku blocked all the places in his house where daylight could shine through.

In the morning, Hine-pūkohu-rangi felt tricked and betrayed. She went back to the sky and never returned to Uenuku while he was alive.

Uenuku was heartbroken and searched the world for his wife. He searched until he was very old and weak. Rangi, the sky father, felt sorry for Uenuku. He changed Uenuku into a rainbow so he could join his family in the sky. They are said to live there to this day, watching over their descendants.

The Kurahaupō tribes in Marlborough know a mountain called Tapuae-o-Uenuku. Its name means 'footprint of the rainbow'. This mountain is where Chief Tapuae-nuku climbed the rainbow steps of his ancestor Uenuku. Both Uenuku and Chief Tapuae-nuku climbed mountains looking for their special wives. Uenuku became a set of mountains with his wife and daughter. Chief Tapuae-nuku joined his own wife and daughter in the afterlife. When a rainbow appears over Tapuae-o-Uenuku, it is a sign of Chief Tapuae-nuku's journey.

Special Artifacts

According to old stories, the spirit of Uenuku was brought from Hawaiki to New Zealand inside a stone. This stone was carried by the people on the Tainui canoe. When they arrived, they made a large carving called Te Uenuku. It was made from a tōtara tree and had a round opening at the top. The stone was placed inside this opening so that the god could live in the carving. This carving is unique among other Māori carvings and looks a bit like Hawaiian carving styles.

Related pages

• Beauty and the Beast
• Cupid and Psyche
• Hsienpo and Yingt’ai

Images for kids

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  Two rainbows. Kahukura is another atua of the rainbow. Tūāwhiorangi is his wife, represented by the lower bow.