Hine-pūkohurangi

Say it: HEE-neh-POO-ko-hoo-RAH-ngee

The mist maiden. She comes down at dawn and lifts, and where she has been the world is softened. She is presence without grasp.

Te Kāwai (Line of descent)

Te Kore → Te ira tangata → Hine-pūkohurangi

Te Kōrero (the story)

Hine-pūkohurangi descended nightly to Te Maunga, a man of the earth, on the condition she leave before daylight. Their union brought Hine-tū-whenua and the people of Ngāi Tūhoe — te Children of the Mist — and the mist over Te Urewera is her still keeping the appointment.

Te Whakapapa (the genealogy)

Sister of Hine-wai (light rain); partner of Te Maunga; ancestress of Ngāi Tūhoe, Te Urewera's mist-people.

Ngā Mana (domains and influence)

Kohu — mist and low cloudThe threshold between night and dayTe Urewera and its ranges

Kei Kōnei Rātou (they are present here)

Mist sitting in a valley at first light.
Fog on a window; breath in cold air.
The half hour before dawn when things are not yet decided.

Ngā Huarahi Hono (ways to connect)

You wake to mist

Stand outside in it for one minute before you check your phone.

Driving through fog

Slow down and say her name. Her country asks you to move at her pace.

A Common Misunderstanding

This profile holds one telling of Hine-pūkohurangi. Pūrākau and whakapapa can differ between iwi and whānau, so it should not be read as the only account.

Ngā Uara (values)

Gentle

A quality carried in the kōrero of Hine-pūkohurangi.

Fleeting

A quality carried in the kōrero of Hine-pūkohurangi.

Exact about boundaries

A quality carried in the kōrero of Hine-pūkohurangi.

Faithful

A quality carried in the kōrero of Hine-pūkohurangi.

Ngā Pūrākau (the traditional stories)

Told in full, the way they would be shared out loud. Versions differ between iwi (tribe), hapū (sub-tribe) and whānau (family).

Te tangi i te ata — the promise broken by daylight

The mist maiden comes down each night to a man of the earth, on one condition the daylight cannot keep for her.

About 5 min read

Ngā tamariki o te kohu — the children of the mist

Hine-pūkohurangi's descent into Te Urewera, and why Tūhoe call themselves the children of the mist.

About 4 min read