Polynesia
What ocean contains the islands of Polynesia?
Pacific Ocean.
What type of boats did Polynesian voyagers use for long-distance travel?
Double-hulled canoe.
What type of leader was usually at the top of Polynesian society?
Chief / High Chief.
Who were the first people to settle New Zealand?
Polynesian Māori.
What are the giant stone statues of Rapa Nui called?
Moai
What three places form the outer points of the Polynesian Triangle?
Hawaii, New Zealand/Aotearoa and Rapa Nui/Easter Island.
Name two natural features Polynesian navigators used to help find their way.
Any two: stars, Sun, winds, ocean currents, waves/swells, clouds, birds.
What group made up most ordinary people in Polynesian society?
Commoners / Manahune.
What important crop did Polynesians bring with them to Aotearoa?
Kūmara / sweet potato.
What is an ahu?
A sacred stone platform used for ceremonies and for placing moai.
What are the three main island regions of the Pacific Ocean?
Polynesia, Micronesia and Melanesia.
What is wayfinding?
Navigating by observing natural signs rather than using maps or compasses.
What was mana?
Sacred spiritual power, authority and prestige.
What large flightless bird became an important food source for early Māori?
Moa
What did the moai represent?
Important ancestors and chiefly power/mana.
From what region are the ancestors of Polynesian peoples believed to have most likely originated?
Southeast Asia.
Why were double-hulled canoes well suited to long ocean voyages?
They were stable in rough seas and could carry people, food, animals and supplies.
How did someone usually become a chief?
The position was generally hereditary, passed through important family ancestry.
Approximately when did the first Māori settlers arrive in Aotearoa?
Around 1250–1300 CE.
What did Professor Lipo’s experiment demonstrate about how the statues may have been moved?
They could be “walked” upright using ropes and a rocking motion.
Despite being spread across more than 1,000 islands, what evidence shows Polynesian peoples are part of a connected cultural region?
Similar languages, traditions, beliefs and cultural practices
How was wayfinding knowledge passed from one generation to the next?
Through oral tradition, including teaching, stories, songs and remembered knowledge.
How could chiefs use tapu (Taboo)
They could declare people, places or resources sacred or restricted, controlling access and helping maintain social order and protect important resources.
How did Māori society change after moa became extinct?
They relied more on farming, fishing, food storage and permanent settlements, and increasingly protected resources using rāhui and tapu.
What are the two main theories that explain the decline of Rapa Nui society?
Environmental/ecocide theory and disease and slavery after European contact.