124 ETHNOGRAPHY. 



The westernmost group on this chart consists of eight islands, with 

 compound names, all beginning or ending with hitte, as Hitte-potto, 

 Te-amaroo-hitte, &c. Hiti is the form which the Samoan word Fiti 

 (Feejee) would take in Tahitian. One of these islands, Ohiteroa, 

 answering to Viti-levu, has been removed from its proper place, as 

 will be shown hereafter, by the same sort of " correction" as was 

 applied to the Marquesas and Paumotu Groups. 



To the east of this row of islets is another, still larger, with the 

 names Weeha, Rotooma, Heavai, Ooporroo, Wourvou, Tootooerre, and 

 Ouwhea. These are evidently Uea (Wallis's Island), Rotuma, Savaii, 

 Upolu, Tutuila, and Uiha (one of the Habai cluster). The first and 

 last, from the similarity of names, seem to have become confused 

 together, and Vavau is laid down out of its place, but there is 

 reason to believe that it was formerly considered as belonging 

 politically to the Navigator Group, to which it approaches nearest 

 of any of the Friendly Islands. It should be observed that on many 

 of the principal islands Tupaia made brief descriptive observations, 

 which are given by Forster. Heavai is laid down five or six times the 

 size of any other island, and Tupaia stated that it was larger than 

 Tahiti, adding this remarkable observation, " it is the father of all 

 the islands." 



Combining these various traditions, we shall probably be thought 

 justified in supposing that the first settlers of the Society Islands 

 came originally from the Samoan Group, and landed or established 

 themselves first at the place now called Opoa, on Raiatea, which they 

 named Havaii, after the principal island of their native country. 

 ' Oro (or more properly Koro) may have been their chief at the time 

 of the migration. Concerning the probable period at which this 

 occurred, we shall offer some considerations in another place. 



Additional evidence that the earliest Tahitian traditions are of 

 Samoan origin may be derived from the work of Mr. Moerenhout 

 (formerly American consul at Tahiti), entitled, " Voyages aux Iks du 

 Grand Ocean," in which we find an ancient mythological ode, 

 obtained from an old Tahitian priest, which the author justly 

 esteems of much importance. Its value is perhaps even greater 

 than he supposed. It relates the creation of the world and of the 

 inferior deities, as accomplished by Taaroa. The first part informs 

 us that Taaroa existed from the beginning, and that he formed the 

 world from his own substance. It concludes as follows : 



