For this Summer Learning Journey, We had to choose a story to listen to then picture a taniwha in your head so you can draw it. Draw the taniwha on white paper and remove the background using Remove BG. Then you say which taniwha you created and the story of it!.
Taniwha originate from the oral traditions and mythology of the Māori people, the indigenous people of New Zealand (Aotearoa). They inhabit deep pools, caves, and the ocean, often in places with strong currents or dangers.
The story I picked to represent my taniwha is Āraiteuru and her sons.
Āraiteuru was a female taniwha, believed to have escorted the Māmari canoe to New Zealand from Hawaiki. In other traditions Āraiteuru and another taniwha named Ruamano guided the Tākitimu canoe.
When she arrived, Āraiteuru gave birth to 11 sons. All went exploring, and on the way they dug trenches – creating the branches of the Hokianga Harbour. One son, Waihou, burrowed inland and lashed his tail about to form Lake Ōmāpere. Another, Ōhopa, was angered by the large number of rocks he encountered, and came to hate all living things. He terrorised the people near the Panguru mountains.
Āraiteuru was a guardian of the Hokianga Harbour, and had her lair in a cave there. She lived at the south head of the harbour, and her companion, known by some as Niua, lived in the north head.
I found this story amazing to do because now I know the story behind, Āraiteuru and her sons.
