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Category:

Itu'muta(1)

Topic:

Origin of District

Consultant:

Poar

Manava of Oinafa went to Itu'ti'u before there was Itu'muta. Fare, the chief, wanted Manava to stay and offered him land to stay and look after. It was a bribe or price to keep him.

All chiefly titles of Itu'muta are derived from Oinafa. Manava stayed and was given land now known as Itu'muta (the piece cut from Itu'ti'u).

Category:

Itu'muta(2)

Topic:

Ho'aga

Consultant:

Manava

Ho'aga	Fa 'es Ho'aga (title)	Fuag ri ne Ho'aga
1. Upu	Ti'u	?
2. Keua	Katoagtau	Niuroi
3. Terfata	Tiarsok	Terfata
4. Samta'ara	Uaf	Posesea
5. Savea	Fangmaniua	Faktaora
6. Fogsau	Tinvao	Fatagpiau
7. Uno	Repora	Uno
8. Savlei	Tupenau	Anserua
9. Ista	Urvaru	Pogtotok

These are the ho'aga of Itumuta given in order of rank. Geographically they are in the following order, beginning at Upu, the Catholic Mission: 1,8,4,2,7,5,3,9,6. This is going along the road to Maftoa.

Ho'aga are clusters of households, under the direction of a sub-chief, who cooperate in performing tasks. Districts are divided into ho'aga.

Category:

Itu'muta(3)

Topic:

Chiefly titles

Consultant:

Manava

The three ho'aga: Keua, Fogsau and Terfata, meet when there is a new chief to be elected for the district. A representative from each of these ho'aga is elected in turn. He always assumes the title Manava, which is an Oinafa name and the name of the first chief of Itu'muta, who was also an Oinafa man.

This Manava is supposed to have married a woman in Savlei and become great friends with the chief of Itu'ti'u, Fär. He made Manava an important man of Itu'ti'u, and Manava asked him for the far end of the island of Rotuma, which was all part of Itu'ti'u.

This is the part beyond the isthmus. But Fär refused because he lived at Mafmanu which is part of that land. But he did give Manava a piece of land which is now Itu'muta. He drew the line from Upu down the center of the isthmus so that Mafmanu would remain in Itu'ti'u. The line is behind the Catholic Mission and the dilo grove and then swings over to Fapoufu (south coast), but before Losa Itu'ti'u begins again.

The ho'aga at the far end of this part of the land is Halafa and it is in Itu'ti'u.

Lulu is in Itu'ti'u but there is no ho'ag name. This is the beach opposite Uea, and beyond the great cliff that runs into the sea.

Uea, the island, is Itu'muta and belongs to Keua. The chief of Keua was the chief of Uea and usually had a man there to represent him. The island formerly belonged to the title of Manava many generations ago but the land has been given or sold now to many different individuals.

Maftoa cemetery
This cemetery, now used and not the one in the village itself, was started by a chief of Itu'muta who buried there his friend Vainuku of Ropouri. This man wished to be buried opposite his home and the point of Roupuri across the bay. His grave was the first in this part of Maftoa.

The stone on this grave was taken from Ranavi, the only source in Rotuma.

These great stones were dragged from the quarry to the cemeteries. First some magic incantation was made over them by a priest to make them light and then he stood on it representing these charms while the men dragged the stone to the grave. Stones from this place are found all over Rotuma on various old graves.

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