Talk:Aitutaki Cook Islands FamilySearch Centre

Aituaki History
My name is Pani Tararo, nee Vaa Taputoa Manarangi Kamire of Paia, Arutanga, Aitutaki. I was born on June 13th, 1956, in Paia, the land where my family has always lived since my mum and dad married on 23 July, 1941. The land, Paia, belonged to my dads mothers family. It was a jungle in the 1930s and my dads family lived in Arutanga. Since mum and dad married, dad decided to move into the countryside, clear the land and reside there. It turned out to be a land of milk and honey for us, growing up, like a garden of Eden. They bore 12 children but 3 died below the age of 6 months, all males. All were buried in Paia. My brothers and sisters were all born within 1942 and 1962 (I will put this on the Family Group Chart). My dad was a practical man and he was self reliant, and every aspect, took full responsibility for the raising of his big family. We lived off the land and the sea. We learnt how to labour with our hands, to survive through times of hardship, which is nothing compared to todays society, and to endure the strict routines. We were taught all manners of survival, even spiritual rules, paying tithing, honoring the Sabbath day, saying prayers, serving others. We were not members of the church and most of my family are still not members today, but I am.

Dad used to tell us stories about the land of Aitutaki, the culture, the ancestors, the cannibalisms, the outbreak of leprosy in Aitutaki in the 1940s. Aitutaki was originally known as Rutataki, named when Ru, who was one of the 7 brothers that sailed from Avaiki, decided to land his vaka called Ngapuariki, on the land and called it after himself. I learned these stories from my dad and from early schooling years. There are songs and legends that tells these stories. I believe this event happened in the 1600s as mssionaries (Papehia &amp; others) came to Aitutaki in 1779. I am not sure if these events are published.

Later, not sure of the date, Aitutaki was renamed the mordern name. It happened in those missionary years, because villagers were fighting each other constantly in a barbaric way and thus the name 'aitu' means barbaric warrior and 'taki' meaning their pursuits or trips. Aitutaki was also named, probably after the missionaries succeeded in converting the people, as Araura, which literally means 'way we dance'.