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Rongo
EntityQ1423283· pop 12· linked from 52 articles

In Māori mythology, Rongo or Rongo-mā-Tāne (also Rongo-hīrea, Rongo-marae-roa, and Rongo-marae-roa-a-Rangi) is a major god (atua) of cultivated plants, especially kūmara, a vital crop. Other crops cultivated by Māori in traditional times included taro, yams (uwhi), cordyline (tī), and gourds (hue). Because of their tropical origin, most of these crops were difficult to grow except in the far north of the North Island, hence the importance of Rongo in New Zealand.

Key facts

Deity.image
File:Image from page 290 of "History and traditions of the Maoris of the west coast, North Island of New Zealand prior to 1840" (1910).jpg
Deity.type
Polynesian
Deity.name
Rongo
Deity.god_of
Māori god of kūmara and cultivated plants,Mangaian god of agriculture and war
Deity.other_names
Rongo-hīrea, Rongo-mā-Tāne, Rongo-marae-roa, Rongo-marae-roa-a-Rangi
Deity.cult_centre
Orongo marae (Mangaia)
Deity.symbol
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Deity.symbols
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Deity.consort
Te-po-tatango, Tavake (Mangaia)
Deity.parents
Rangi and Papa (Arawa tribes), or Vatea and Papa (southern Cook Islands), or Tāne (Ngāti Awa tribe)
Deity.siblings
Rehua, Urutengangana, Haumia, Tāne, Tangaroa, Tāwhirimātea, Tū, Rūaumoko
Deity.offspring
Tavake, Rangi, Mokoiro, Akatauira (Mangaia)
Deity.gender
Male
Deity.region
Polynesia
Deity.ethnic_group
New Zealand Māori,Southern Cook Islands Māori, particularly Mangaians

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Wikidata facts

Image
Image from page 290 of "History and traditions of the Maoris of the west coast, North Island of New Zealand prior to 1840" (1910).jpg
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Commons category
Rongo (god)
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~6 min read

Article

6 sections
Contents
  • Separation of the primordial parents
  • Kūmara
  • Rongo in the Cook Islands
  • See also
  • References
  • Bibliography

In Māori mythology, Rongo or Rongo-mā-Tāne (also Rongo-hīrea, Rongo-marae-roa, and Rongo-marae-roa-a-Rangi) is a major god (atua) of cultivated plants, especially kūmara, a vital crop. Other crops cultivated by Māori in traditional times included taro, yams (uwhi), cordyline (tī), and gourds (hue). Because of their tropical origin, most of these crops were difficult to grow except in the far north of the North Island, hence the importance of Rongo in New Zealand.

He was also an important god of agriculture and god of war in the southern Cook Islands, especially on Mangaia where the Akaoro marae and Orongo marae were centres of his worship; where cooked taro was offered to him to assure success in battle and the fertility of land.

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