OUR HISTORY: 24 Generations!

Ubea...Uvea-Wallis and Futuna (French Territory).

Mugaba..traditional name of Rennell island.

Mungiki.... Traditional name of Bellona Island.

Avaiki...Name is used by youth of the island as their identity.

Kaitu'u....the common ancestor of Rennell and Bellona people. He was believed to be the leader of the expedition that discovered the Avaiki islands.

HISTORY

The history of Mugaba and Mungiki (Rennell & Bellona) began when Kaitu'u and other clansmen left Ubea (now (Uvea) Wallis & Futuna) and crossed the Pacific ocean and settled in the Solomons. The actual cause(s) of their departure of Ubea is not known, but their journey to the the Solomons has been preserved and documented by anthropologists who have been studying this remarkable history for decades.

The story varies depending on who told the story and their areas of emphasis, however, the people of these Islands are descendants of Polynesian warriors who came to the Islands many years ago from Ubea (Wallis & Futuna). The actual year of the departure of Kaitu'u and the clansmen from Ubea is also unknown, but we can only estimate the time period of their departure of Ubea (Wallis and Futuna) based on Wallis & Futuna's history. According to Uvean (Ubea) history, the Islands of Wallis and Futuna were not populated until Tongans arrived there in the 13th Century. Thus, Kaitu'u and other Clansmen could have left Ubea around or later in 13th Century.

Physical Evidence

There are physical evidences of the connection between the islands of Mugaba and Mungiki (Rennell and Bellona) and the Polynesian Triangle, particularly Uvea. Kaitu'u's settled in Mugaba and Mungiki and named his two homesteads after his homeland, Ubea (Uvea). There is also a village in the Eastern side (Matangi) called Nuku-Tonga. One of the villages in Lake Tegano called Hutuna (Rennellese verson of Futuna) etc.

Mugaba and Mungiki Today

Today, the people of Mugaba and Mungiki still maintain their culture, language, and social practices brought to the islands from Ubea (Wallis and Futuna) and the Polynesian Triangle.

The historians of the islands have traced at least 24 Generations all the way back to the first ancestors who came to the islands from Ubea. The first generation or those who came on canoes from Ubea were only known by their first names;

They were:

1. Sa'a Kaitu'u

2. Sa'a Taupongi

3. Sa'a Sau (extinct)

4. Sa'a Tongo (extinct)

5. Sa'a Puka (extinct)

6. Sa'a Tanga (extinct)

7. Sa'a Nikatemon (extinct)

After many years of tribal war, five of the clans were eliminated by the Kaitu'u clan, and only two clans survived to this day. The two surviving Clans are Sa'a Kaitu'u (Clan of Kaitu'u) and Sa'a Taupongi (Clan of Taupongi). Sa'a Kaitu'u occupied most part of Bellona and all of Rennell Island, whereas Sa'a Taupongi occupied the lower Bellona Island (Ngango) or Western end of the island.

Hiti

When our ancestors arrived in Mungiki from Ubea, they discovered that the island was occupied by native black people whom they referred to as the Hiti. The encountered with the Hiti left significant evidence and social influence on these Polynesians even down to the present generation. The common usage of "gh" and "L" in Mugaba and Mungiki (Rennell and Bellona) dialect is one of those significant evidences. Historians also suggested that these Hiti may have taught these Polynesian people how to catch flying fishes (Sasabe), eat Ngemungi, and other fruits unknown to the Polynesian world (Bellona Islands Belief and Rituals, p. 107). Legend also has it that these Hitis were killed to extinction by Kaitu'u to avenge the death of his nephew who was killed by a group of angry Hitis. Kaitu'u waged a long enduring war against the Hiti from Bellona to Rennell Island that eventually led to their extinction.

Whatever the truth is, it is obvious that all Polynesians who arrived and occupied the smaller islands on the outskirt of Solomon Islands have similar history of encountering black people.

No High Chief

From the First Generation to the introduction of Western culture through Christianity, no warrior chief ever attempted to unite the the people of Mugaba and Mungiki under his power like King Kamehameha of Hawaii, Tuitonga of Tonga, or Cakobau of Fiji. The Clansmen lived in their own lands and ruled their own house-holds for centuries. Tribal war occurred much later over as tribes fought each other either in retaliation or over land dispute. During that tribal conflict, the powerful tribe ruled the roads and public places, and the defeated tribe retreated to the jungle and rearmed. This style of warfare didn' give an individual chief or tribe the opportunity to conquer and rule as the King of the people. Each tribe and sub-tribe had powerful leaders and warriors in battle. Chief ruler-ship (Paramount chief) in the Islands was and is a a foreign construct.

Great Britain, in fear of French expansion in the Melanesia region, declared the group of Islands that later became Solomon Islands, British Protectorate State. To keep remote people in check, the Colonial government chose community leaders and established local committees in the islands. Headmen were hand picked and endorsed by the people to act as local administrators. They acted as middle men between the people and the colonial government, and sometimes acted as a local magistrate or judge (Headmen often presided over land cases).

A Chiefs Committee was also selected to act as a governing body of the community. These chiefs were handpicked based on the status of their family and tribal ties, and a Paramount Chief was also appointed based on recommendations by the people. He presided over the CC and was to hold the office for a year before giving it to another chief selected and agreed on by the Chiefs Committee. This committee was ended in the late 1980s.