Turaga na Gonesau

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Nobility of Fiji

Titles
Adi - Bulou
Ro - Roko - Ratu

Institutions
Great Council of Chiefs
Chairman, Great Council of Chiefs
House of Chiefs

Confederacies:
Burebasaga - Kubuna - Tovata

Rotuman Traditional Leadership
Gagaja - Sau - Fakpure - Mua

The Turaga na Gonesau is a chiefly title of the Fiji Islands and is viewed as the Paramount Chief of the Nakorotubu district[1] in the Province of Ra on the Main Island of Viti Levu.

Contents

[edit] In Translation

The name Gonesau means "blessed child" as the first "Gonesau" was the youngest son of Rokomautu from Verata (the first son of the Mythological High Chief and master sailor Lutunasobasoba[2], who is traditionally believed to have led the first migration to Fiji[3]).

[edit] In History

Rokomautu gave his blessing or "Sau" or Mana to his youngest son to be powerful in war, in intellect, and in anything that he would undertake.

The Gonesau settled in Nakorotubu from Verata[4]. Bau and Nasautoka in Wainibuka were settled by grandsons of Rokomautu, namely Raivalita and Koli respectively[5], The name Kavula and its district means white or pure and was meant to be a beacon of light (purity) for the Fijian race so the holders of that light were the Gonesau[6].

The Gonesau's title was given by the first Roko Tui Bau and close cousin, Vueti Verata (a great great grandson of Rokomautu and grandson of Raivalita) for saving Bau during its early emergence as a Matanitu[7][8].

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ The Method of Hope, By Hirokazu Miyazaki, P101, 102
  2. ^ The Kalou-Vu (Ancestor-Gods) of the Fijians, Basil H. Thomson, Vol. 24, 1895 (1895), pp.340-359
  3. ^ The Kalou-Vu (Ancestor-Gods) of the Fijians, Basil H. Thomson, Vol. 24, 1895 (1895), pp.340-359
  4. ^ Tukutuku Raraba National Archives Fiji Islands
  5. ^ Fiji Times,The wonder and mystery of how Fijian history is repeated,BY ROBERT MATAU, Monday, March 26, 2007
  6. ^ Fiji Times,The wonder and mystery of how Fijian history is repeated,BY ROBERT MATAU, Monday, March 26, 2007
  7. ^ Fiji Times,The wonder and mystery of how Fijian history is repeated,BY ROBERT MATAU, Monday, March 26, 2007
  8. ^ Tukutuku Raraba National Archives Fiji Islands

[edit] References

  • The Method of Hope: Anthropology, Philosophy, and Fijian Knowledge, By by Hirokazu Miyazaki
  • Tukutuku Raraba National Archives Fiji, The Pacific Way – A Memoir – Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara – university of Hawaii press Honolulu, Reference to ‘Tukutuku Raraba’ as ‘registrar of land owners rights and customs’
  • The Kalou-Vu (Ancestor-Gods) of the Fijians, Basil H. Thomson, The Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, Vol. 24, 1895 (1895), pp. 340-359, doi:10.2307/2842183

Translations and Transliterations

  • Say it in Fijian, An Entertaining Introduction to the Language of Fiji, by Albert James Schütz – 1972
  • Lonely Planet Fijian Phrasebook, by Paul Geraghty - 1994 - 182 pages
  • Spoken Fijian: An Intensive Course in Bauan Fijian, with Grammatical Notes and Glossary By Rusiate T. Komaitai, Albert J. Schütz, Contributor Rusiate T Komaitai , Published 1971, Univ of Hawaii Pr , Foreign Language / Dictionaries / Phrase Books , ISBN 0870227467

[edit] External Links