Page:Maori Division of Time.djvu/37

Rh Nos. 3, 4, and 15 are the new forms; they appear to replace Oue, Okoro, and Maure. The Mangaia list follows:—

A certain amount of displacement is noticed in the above list, and the two series of Korekore nights is a new feature. The Rev. W. Gill writes: "At Rarotonga the 13th is Maitu instead of Atua; otherwise this account of the changes of the moon is equally good for Rarotonga. Allowing for the difference of dialects it is the same in the Tahitian Islands." In his Jottings from the Pacific he remarks: "Polynesians invariably counted by nights, not by days. The reason assigned for this practice is that one day is like another, whereas each night gives a different phase of the moon, with a distinct name.… Something perhaps may be put down to their habit, when voyaging, of steering by the stars." To put it briefly, they measured time by the moon because its changes are so apparent, as other peoples of a similar culture stage did.

In the above list Ari, the 11th night of the moon in most Maori lists, appears as Ovari. The O is merely a prefix. It is a curious and interesting fact that in these two words, Ari and vari, we have two rice-names of Oriental lands. The Maori planted his crops during the Ari phase of the moon. The Maori equivalent for Ceres is Pani, who produced crops in water; and pandi, padi, and pari are grain-names connected with the vari of Polynesia and the ari of New Zealand.

Here we again encounter the Maori names, showing that they were introduced hither from Polynesia during past centuries. A few only differ; the great majority are easily recognized by bearing in mind that the Tahitian dialect has lost the k and ng that it formerly possessed.

No. 11.
 * 1) Hiro-hiti.
 * 2) Hoata.
 * 3) Hamiami-mua.
 * 4) Hamiami-roto.
 * 5) Hamiami-muri.
 * 6) Oreore-mua. 'Ore'ore = Korekore.
 * 7) Oreore-muri.
 * 8) Tamatea.
 * 9) Huna.
 * 10) Ari.
 * 11) Maharu.
 * 12) Hua.
 * 13) Maitu.