Hou-mea

The wife of Uta. She was an ogress who devoured her own children. She was killed by hot stones thrown down her open, insatiable mouth. The shag (cormorant), being a greedy bird, is still her representative, and her name is used as a by-word for all evil, thievish, and adulterous women.

❧

References

Sources

  • Tregear, Edward. (1891). Maori-Polynesian Comparative Dictionary. Wellington: Government Printer, pp. 87, 582.
  • White, John. (1887). Ancient History of the Maori. 6 vols. Wellington: G. Didsbury, Government Printer, p. 2:171.