Myths and Legends of the Polynesians

About this book

Across islands divided by vast distances, navigators and storytellers remembered gods who raised land from the ocean, ancestors who changed shape and voyagers whose deeds explained the world around them.

Johannes C. Andersen gathers Polynesian traditions and examines the connections among their names, beliefs and narratives. The material ranges from creation stories to ancestral exploits and the significance of sacred places. Andersen’s comparative approach reflects the assumptions of his period. The stories retain their interest as records of ancestral journeys, creation and sacred places, best read alongside the knowledge of living Pacific communities.