Sina and the Eel
Encyclopedia
Sina and the Eel is a myth of origins
in Samoan mythology
which explains the origins of the first coconut
tree.
In the Samoan language the legend is called Sina ma le Tuna. Tuna is the Samoan word for 'eel'.
The story is also well known throughout Polynesia
including Tonga
, Fiji
and Māori in New Zealand
.
Different versions of the legend are told in different countries in Oceania
. The coconut tree (Cocos nucifera) has many uses and is an important source of food. It is also used for making coconut oil
, baskets, sennit
rope used in traditional Samoan house building, weaving and for the building of small traditional houses or fale
. The dried meat of the coconut or copra
has been an important export product and a source of income throughout the Pacific.
The legend of Sina and the Eel is associated with other figures in Polynesian mythology
such as Hina
, Tinilau
, Tagaloa
and Nafanua
.
Sina is also the name of various female figures in Polynesian mythology. The word sina also means 'white' or silver haired (grey haired in age) in the Samoan language
. There is also an old Samoan song called Soufuna Sina based on a Sina legend.
in Samoa, one version of the legend tells of a beautiful girl called Sina who had a small pet eel. When the eel grew, it fell in love with Sina. This made the girl afraid. She tried to run away, but the fish followed her. Sina finally sought refuge in a village, and thinking that she had escaped, went to the village pool to get water.
However, when Sina looked into the pool, she saw the eel staring up at her.
Angry, she cried 'You stare at me, with eyes like a demon!' . Village chiefs came and killed the eel. As the fish was dying, it asked Sina to plant its head in the ground. Sina followed the eel's request, and planted its head in the ground. A coconut tree grew from the ground. When the husk is removed from a coconut, there are three round marks which appear like the face of the fish with two eyes and a mouth. One of the marks is pierced for drinking the coconut, and hence when Sina takes a drink, she is kissing the eel.
In Samoa, the fresh spring pool Mata o le Alelo
in the small village of Matavai, Safune
, is associated with the legend of Sina and the Eel. The pool is named after Sina's words to the eel in the legend. The pool is open to visitors.
Myth of origins
An origin myth is a myth that purports to describe the origin of some feature of the natural or social world. One type of origin myth is the cosmogonic myth, which describes the creation of the world...
in Samoan mythology
Samoan mythology
Samoan mythology tell stories of many different gods. There were gods of the forest, the seas, rain, harvest, villages and war. There were two types of gods, atua who had non-human origins and aitu who were of human origin. Tagaloa was a supreme god who made the islands and the people. Mafui'e was...
which explains the origins of the first coconut
Coconut
The coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...
tree.
In the Samoan language the legend is called Sina ma le Tuna. Tuna is the Samoan word for 'eel'.
The story is also well known throughout Polynesia
Polynesia
Polynesia is a subregion of Oceania, made up of over 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. The indigenous people who inhabit the islands of Polynesia are termed Polynesians and they share many similar traits including language, culture and beliefs...
including Tonga
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
, Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
and Māori in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
.
Different versions of the legend are told in different countries in Oceania
Oceania
Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
. The coconut tree (Cocos nucifera) has many uses and is an important source of food. It is also used for making coconut oil
Coconut oil
Coconut oil is an edible oil extracted from the kernel or meat of matured coconuts harvested from the coconut palm . Throughout the tropical world, it has provided the primary source of fat in the diets of millions of people for generations. It has various applications in food, medicine, and industry...
, baskets, sennit
Sennit
Sennit is a type of cordage made by plaiting strands of dried fibre or grass. It can be used ornamentally in crafts, like a kind of macrame, or to make straw hats...
rope used in traditional Samoan house building, weaving and for the building of small traditional houses or fale
Beach fale
Beach fale is a modern term for a simple thatched hut in Samoa. They are also common in other parts of Polynesia. They have become popular in tourism as low budget accommodation situated by the coast, built with a few posts, no walls and a thatched roof with a round or oval shape.The word fale is...
. The dried meat of the coconut or copra
Copra
Copra is the dried meat, or kernel, of the coconut. Coconut oil extracted from it has made copra an important agricultural commodity for many coconut-producing countries. It also yields coconut cake which is mainly used as feed for livestock.-Production:...
has been an important export product and a source of income throughout the Pacific.
The legend of Sina and the Eel is associated with other figures in Polynesian mythology
Polynesian mythology
Polynesian mythology is the oral traditions of the people of Polynesia, a grouping of Central and South Pacific Ocean island archipelagos in the Polynesian triangle together with the scattered cultures known as the Polynesian outliers...
such as Hina
Hina (goddess)
Hina is the name of several different goddesses and women in Polynesian mythology. In some traditions, the trickster and culture hero Maui has a wife named Hina, as do the gods Tane and Tangaroa. Hina is often associated with the moon....
, Tinilau
Tinilau
In the Polynesian mythology of Samoa, stories about Tinilau and his wife Sina are very popular. There are numerous legends, and much variation in the tellings . Here are some examples:...
, Tagaloa
Tagaloa
In Samoan mythology, Tagaloa is generally accepted as the supreme ruler, the creator of the universe, the chief of all gods and the progenitor of other gods and humans. Tagaloa dwelt in space and made the Heavens , the sky, the land, the seas, the fresh water, the trees and the people...
and Nafanua
Nafanua
Nafanua is the name of the revered Goddess of War in Samoa and a deity in Polynesian Mythology.According to Samoan mythology, Nafanua was the daughter of Saveasi'uleo, the God of Pulotu, Samoa's spirit world. In one legend, Nafanua's mother was Tilafaiga the sister of Taema.-Background:Nafanua is a...
.
Sina is also the name of various female figures in Polynesian mythology. The word sina also means 'white' or silver haired (grey haired in age) in the Samoan language
Samoan language
Samoan Samoan Samoan (Gagana Sāmoa, is the language of the Samoan Islands, comprising the independent country of Samoa and the United States territory of American Samoa. It is an official language—alongside English—in both jurisdictions. Samoan, a Polynesian language, is the first language for most...
. There is also an old Samoan song called Soufuna Sina based on a Sina legend.
The story
On the island of Savai'iSavai'i
Savaii is the largest and highest island in Samoa and the Samoa Islands chain. It is also the biggest landmass in Polynesia outside Hawaii and New Zealand. The island of Savai'i is also referred to by Samoans as Salafai, a classical Samoan term used in oratory and prose...
in Samoa, one version of the legend tells of a beautiful girl called Sina who had a small pet eel. When the eel grew, it fell in love with Sina. This made the girl afraid. She tried to run away, but the fish followed her. Sina finally sought refuge in a village, and thinking that she had escaped, went to the village pool to get water.
However, when Sina looked into the pool, she saw the eel staring up at her.
Angry, she cried 'You stare at me, with eyes like a demon!' . Village chiefs came and killed the eel. As the fish was dying, it asked Sina to plant its head in the ground. Sina followed the eel's request, and planted its head in the ground. A coconut tree grew from the ground. When the husk is removed from a coconut, there are three round marks which appear like the face of the fish with two eyes and a mouth. One of the marks is pierced for drinking the coconut, and hence when Sina takes a drink, she is kissing the eel.
In Samoa, the fresh spring pool Mata o le Alelo
Mata o le Alelo
Mata o le Alelo is a village pool in Samoa associated with the Polynesian legend Sina and the Eel.Mata o le Alelo is in the small village of Matavai, in the village district Safune on the central north coast of Savai'i island in Samoa....
in the small village of Matavai, Safune
Safune
Safune is a traditional village district on the central north coast of Savai'i island in Samoa. It lies within the electoral constituency of Gaga'ifomauga. Safune is the birthplace of Mau leader Olaf Frederick Nelson and the filming location of Moana , one of the first documentaries made in the world...
, is associated with the legend of Sina and the Eel. The pool is named after Sina's words to the eel in the legend. The pool is open to visitors.
Different Versions
- Another version of the story says that Sina was from the village of Laloata on the island of UpoluUpoluUpolu is an island in Samoa, formed by a massive basaltic shield volcano which rises from the seafloor of the western Pacific Ocean. The island is long, in area, and is the second largest in geographic area as well as the most populated of the Samoan Islands. Upolu is situated to the east of...
, and her father's name was Pai.
- On MangaiaMangaiaMangaia is the most southerly of the Cook Islands and the second largest, after Rarotonga.-Geography:...
in the Cook IslandsCook IslandsThe Cook Islands is a self-governing parliamentary democracy in the South Pacific Ocean in free association with New Zealand...
the version of the story is about a beautiful woman named ‘Ina-moe-Aitu who lived in a cave near TamaruaTamaruaTamarua is one of the six traditional districts of the island of Mangaia in the Cook Islands. It is located in the southeast of the island, to the south of the District of Ivirua and east of the District of Veitatei....
village and bathed in a stream in her cave.