Maker of the World
Ni Vanuatu · deity · primordial · Recorded classification
Cognate with Polynesian Tangaroa but a distinct Melanesian creator-trickster; recorded directly by Codrington (1891) and in later Vanuatu kastom collections. Treated as a deity (creator). Brother variously Suqe-matua / Mwerambuto / Meragbuto.
Domains
- creation
- custom and order
Powers
- shapes the islands, plants, animals and people aright
- Shape the islands, plants, animals and people aright
Epithets
- Tagaro The creator and culture-hero of north Vanuatu, the well-doing power who shaped the worldR. H. Codrington, The Melanesians (secondary)
Relations
- sibling: The Foolish BrotherReciprocal of vanuatu_mwerambuto.sibling — The foolish brother of the wise creator: whatever Tagaro made right, his counterpart marred.R.H. Codrington, The Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folk-Lore (1891) (secondary)
- rival: The Foolish BrotherReciprocal of vanuatu_mwerambuto.rival — His perverse counter-creations oppose Tagaro's good order in the Maewo and Ambae tales.R.H. Codrington, The Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folk-Lore (1891) (secondary)
Sources
- Tagaro (Takaro/Tangaro) is the principal creator deity of northern Vanuatu (the New Hebrides), who shaped the islands, living things and human customs; on Ambae he is paired with a foolish brother, and the two name the matrilineal moieties.: Codrington, R.H. The Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folklore (1891) (primary)