Tbegear. — Polynesian Folk-lore. 393 



Europeans, and with curious word-relationships in Polynesia. 

 As examples of European use, I may quote the " Legendary 

 Fictions of the Irish Celts," by P. Kennedy : — 



" Just as the plough-irons were becoming red-hot, someone 

 tried the latch of the door, and immediately they saw the face 

 of the witch outside the window. ' What do you want, good 

 woman ?' ' The seed of the fire, and I want to help you at the 

 churning,' " etc. (p. 152.) Again, " But every Holy Eve during 

 their lives they threw the water out as soon as their feet were 

 washed, unhanded the wheel, swept up the house, and covered 

 the big coal to have the seed of fire next morning" (p. 165). 



In the sacred books of the ancient Persians the same idea 

 may be found. The xviii. Fargardofthe "Vendidad" (Zend- 

 Avesta), 52 (112), says : " Then shalt thou call his name ' Fire- 

 creature,' 'Fire-seed,' 'Fire-offspring,' 'Fire-land,' or any name 

 wherein there is fire." Thus it would appear that "fire-seed " 

 was an idiom well-known to both the European and Asiatic 

 branches of the Aryan stock. In Maori the word purapura, 

 meaning " seed," is evidently connected in some way with 

 "fire." In New Zealand, pura does not mean fire; but in 

 composition it does so, as may be seen in kapura and mapura 

 (ka-pura and ma-pura), both words for "fire."* In Hawaiian, 

 pula means "a small particle" of anything, as dust; pula- 

 pula is (1) "the tops of sugar-cane cut for planting," (2) "a 

 devotee," (3) "anger," "revenge;" in this dialect the connec- 

 tion both with "seed" and "fire" has been weakened. In 

 Samoan we have pula, "to shine," "to be yellow," as ripe fruit; 

 but in Tahitian we have the fullest sense on both sides of the 

 word : pura means " a spark of fire," "a flash of fire or light," 

 "to flash," "to blaze;" purara, "dispersion;" faa-purara, "to 

 scatter," "spread abroad;" haa-purara {whaka-purara), " to make 

 sparks fly," " to spread abroad," " a disperser." It seems almost 

 certain that the sowing, scattering abroad as of seed, is the 

 scattering of sparks, the "fire-seed" in its original sense. I 

 have in a, former paper (" Hina," etc.) expressed my belief that 

 the Maori ura, " to glow," is from the original world-spread root 

 ur, or, aur, etc., used all over the ancient world. I find that 

 certain scholars consider that the Latin uro had originally a b 

 before it, from the words found in composition, as comburo, 

 amburo, bustum, etc. I do not think that this is altogether 

 proven, as I believe the root bur to be ur with the digamma 

 sound prefixed ; but should it prove to be the case, then baro 

 compares with the Greek pur or pyr (wip), "fire," and is a sister 

 of the Polynesian pura, "fire." There is a clear connection 

 between gold and sun-worship ; gold, the or (aurum) of old days : 

 "The sacredness of gold seems indicated by Pindar, who, 



* Mura, mumura, etc., " to blaze," is the m to p (the nib or mp) variant. 



