Skip to main content

Story: Whakapapa – genealogy

Kanaloa – Hawaii

Kanaloa – Hawaii

This carving shows Kanaloa, the Hawaiian name for Tangaroa. Kanaloa is associated with the sea and the underworld in Hawaiian tradition.

Using this item

Royal Tiki

This item has been provided for private study purposes (such as school projects, family and local history research) and any published reproduction (print or electronic) may infringe copyright law. It is the responsibility of the user of any material to obtain clearance from the copyright holder.

All images & media in this story

How to cite this page

Rāwiri Taonui, Whakapapa – genealogy – Whakapapa with links to Polynesia, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/30906/kanaloa-hawaii (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Rāwiri Taonui, published 3 May 2011, updated 1 July 2015.

Comments

Jane Rangi Minhinnick
23 April 2022
In my Taranaki whakapapa we have an ancestor whose name is Tangaroa. According to family knowldgeable research, our Tangaroa was a real human being around the 1300 to 1400 era. Who is Samoan married to our Taranaki tupuna Raukura. They had 3 children 1. Hitou=Rakeiwhareao. 2. Te Kokongapouri. 3. Merekihereka. We come off Hitou who had Hinekete=Rongonui-a-rangi Tamaiwi who had Nihera who took surname Raukura our tupuna. I have searched for our Tangaroa on line but nothing has been recorded. I guess i would have to visot Samoa. Do you have any information that can connect to our tupuna?