RONGO
Maori Agriculture God
Also known as Rongo-Ma-Tane, Rongomatane
God of Peace and Root Vegetables
His name means ‘peace’ – and what symbolizes peace better than a root vegetable?
Agriculture is more or less the opposite of war if you think about it. Instead of trampling over a battlefield trying to kill things, farmers tend their fields to encourage life and growth.
We have it on good authority that Rongo particularly likes a nice plate of tasty kumara, a colorful sweet potato-like vegetable.
Talking of food, one of his brothers is Haumia-tiketike, the God of Wild Food. They probably go well together. So if you need a lovely bunch of coconuts, call on him and you can’t go rong.
Slightly oddly, he is also known as Rongo-mā-Tāne, which means ‘Rongo and Tāne’. Could this be some form of godly double act starring Rongo and Tane?
Meanwhile, over in Hawaii, Rongo is known as Lono.
Rongo Facts and Figures
Name: Rongo
Pronunciation: Coming soon
Alternative names: Rongo-Ma-Tane, Rongomatane
Gender: Male
Type: God
Area or people: Polynesia
Celebration or Feast Day: Unknown at present
Role:
In charge of: Agriculture and Farming
Area of expertise: Agriculture, Farming
Good/Evil Rating: Unknown at present
Popularity index: 15396
Cite this article
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Article last revised on April 30, 2019 by Rowan Allen.
Editors: Peter J. Allen, Chas Saunders
References: Coming soon.