A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

Overview

Codrington explicitly identifies Merambuto as a vui in his Ambae account, comparing his relation to Tagaro with the separate Qasavara stories. An earlier night attack fails when Tagaro hides his companions in a shell. The later collected tales supply two different endings rather than a single sequential biography.

In the fruit-tree encounter Mera-mbuto and his brothers claim branches while Tagaro sits above them. He asks to hear Tagaro’s conch from his cave. Its blast makes the brothers fall; Mera-mbuto’s delighted jumping drives his head into the rock and he dies. In another telling, his jealousy of Tagaro’s food leads him to imitate false explanations. After attempting to burn Tagaro, who survives beneath the house, he asks for the same experience and dies in the fire. These episodes do not supply giant measurements or make him a generically invulnerable being.

Named vui antagonistCave residence in one tellingTwo alternative fatal trickster encounters
01

Origins & earliest records

R. H. Codrington, The Melanesians (Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1891), Chapter XIX, III.16–17, pp. 409–411; Chapter X, p. 170. Chapter XIX identifies islander-written manuscripts as its basis, without naming each individual contributor.

02

Records & interpretation

Complete relevant selected tale or explicitly abridged footnote read. Local identity, separate versions and unnamed narrator limitations retained.

In the literature

“Merambuto, also a vui”
R. H. Codrington; selected manuscript writer unnamed · The Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folk-lore
Chapter X, p.170; explicit classification · R. H. Codrington

Codrington specifically calls Merambuto a vui and compares him to Qasavara. A failed night attack is answered by Tagaro hiding the group in a shell and later changing their refuge after the secret is exposed. The comparison does not establish identical beings or one continuous biography across islands.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    The Melanesians, Chapter XIX, III.16–17, pp. 409–411; Chapter X, p. 170

    R. H. Codrington, translator/compiler; unnamed local manuscript writer · 1891

    Published collected witness; modern oral/community variants not exhausted.

  2. 02

    The Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folk-lore

    R. H. Codrington; selected island manuscript writer unnamed · 1891

    R. H. Codrington, The Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folk-lore, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1891; University of Toronto historical scan/OCR. Complete selected Chapter XIX II.1–2 and III.14–17 narratives and the complete separately marked Qat-wuruga manuscript abstract independently read. Chapter XIX p356 says stories except the first derive from islanders’ manuscripts supplied to him; no individual writer supplied for these selected accounts. Original manuscripts not independently inspected.

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 Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folk-lore

R. H. Codrington, The Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folk-lore, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1891; University of Toronto historical scan/OCR. Complete selected Chapter XIX II.1–2 and III.14–17 narratives and the complete separately marked Qat-wuruga manuscript abstract independently read. Chapter XIX p356 says stories except the first derive from islanders’ manuscripts supplied to him; no individual writer supplied for these selected accounts. Original manuscripts not independently inspected.

  1. Codrington specifically calls Merambuto a vui and compares him to Qasavara. A failed night attack is answered by Tagaro hiding the group in a shell and later changing their refuge after the secret is exposed. The comparison does not establish identical beings or one continuous biography across islands.

    Chapter X, p.170; class and collector comparison

  2. Mera-mbuto asks Tagaro to sound the conch after he retreats to his cave. The blast makes his brothers fall from the tree and die; his delighted jumping drives his head against the rock and kills him. The source names brothers but supplies neither their individual names nor giant measurements.

    Chapter XIX III.16, pp.409–410; conch and fatal cave leap

  3. In another complete tale Tagaro’s deceptive food explanations lead Mera-mbuto to cook his own mother. He burns Tagaro’s house, but the latter survives underground. When Mera-mbuto requests the same experiment, Tagaro burns him in his house. This death is explicitly a separate headed variant, not an event after resurrection from the preceding cave death.

    Chapter XIX III.17, p.411; separate burning version

Original island manuscript not inspected; unidentified narrators not invented. Specific local version, not present community consensus. No ceremonial formulas copied; facsimile not visually checked in this batch.

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. Primary collected textCodrington, Chapter XIX, III.16–17, pp. 409–411; Chapter X, p. 170Research access: 2026-10-05
  2. Primary collected interpretationCodrington, Chapter X, Merambuto as vui, p. 170Research access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

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