A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.
Overview
After fleeing to the shore, Hina-hele-ki-fata calls to birds, creeping creatures and fish. She marks the bodies of visiting fish, while a shark’s proposed use of a tooth angers her. Last comes a turtle, which says it has brought tortoiseshell to hang in her curls. She praises it and climbs onto its back, carrying coconuts for the voyage. The turtle belongs to this particular encounter; it is not identified as one of the separate transformed Turtle Brothers of Juju.
The turtle asks her to tell it when she wants a coconut opened, promising to show a suitable surface. She instead breaks one against its head. Hurt by the blow, the turtle contracts and withdraws its head into its shell. The account explicitly uses this incident to explain why turtles retract their heads thereafter. Its distinctive action is speech, transport and an attributed origin of an animal habit, without a supplied personal name or further adventures.
Origins & earliest records
Pulekula, a teacher at Tama-ha-le-leka, Liku, wrote these traditions in October 1901. The Journal of the Polynesian Society printed Niuean text alongside S. Percy Smith’s translation in 1903. Smith’s introductory note acknowledges that he could not fully question obscure passages and sometimes failed to grasp the writers’ meaning.
Records & interpretation
Complete English section 60–64 read; original pp. 98 and 100 visually inspected. The turtle episode is paragraph 64 on printed p. 100; adjoining Niuean is p. 99.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
The Traditions of Niue-Fekai: “Hina-hele-ki-fata,” paragraphs 60–64, printed pp. 98–100
Complete English section 60–64 read; original pp. 98 and 100 visually inspected. The turtle episode is paragraph 64 on printed p. 100; adjoining Niuean is p. 99. The accessible scan is the Johnson Reprint Corporation 1967 reprint of the 1903 journal volume.
- 02
The Traditions of Niue-Fekai: Hina-hele-ki-fata
Pulekula, teacher at Tama-ha-le-leka, Liku, written October1901; English translation by S.PercySmith in Journal of the Polynesian Society12 (1903). Selected scan visibly preserves the1903 Wellington title and a Johnson first-reprinting1967 notice. It is a1967 reprint scan, not a newly inspected original1903 physical copy. Smith’s pre-appendix note acknowledges limited opportunities for clarification and occasional failure to grasp the writers’ meaning.
Family & connections
A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.
Located primary passages
Specific passages supporting details in this entry, grouped by their published witness.
The Traditions of Niue-Fekai: “Hina-hele-ki-fata,” paragraphs 60–64, printed pp. 98–100
Pulekula, teacher at Tama-ha-le-leka, Liku, written October1901; English translation by S.PercySmith in Journal of the Polynesian Society12 (1903). Selected scan visibly preserves the1903 Wellington title and a Johnson first-reprinting1967 notice. It is a1967 reprint scan, not a newly inspected original1903 physical copy. Smith’s pre-appendix note acknowledges limited opportunities for clarification and occasional failure to grasp the writers’ meaning.
- Hina-hele-ki-fata is introduced as Hina’s beloved child. After an assault during a fire-fetching visit and punishment from her parent, she flees to the shore. Visiting fish receive body markings; a shark’s proposed tooth use angers her. A turtle offers tortoiseshell ornaments and carries her with coconuts. It offers to identify a surface for opening one, but she strikes its head instead. It retracts its head from pain; the narrative explains subsequent turtle head-withdrawal through this event.
Smith’s historical translation is used with its stated uncertainties. Selected pages were read completely; no claim that all Niuean text was translated independently or the entire journal was read. Public availability of the1967 facsimile is not treated as a universal reuse licence.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Primary written narrative with historical translationJournal of the Polynesian Society, volume 12 (1903): digitized journal (1903 journal; 1967 reprint scan)Research access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.