Deities
Nareau
Micronesian Deities
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Nareau, whose name means Spider, is the creator figure of Gilbertese (i-Kiribati) tradition in Micronesia. In the version recorded by Arthur Grimble from island narrators, Nareau the Elder wakes alone in a primordial darkness enclosing sky and earth stuck together, cracks it open, and sets the pattern of creation in motion; a younger Nareau, his son, then completes the separation of sky from earth and the ordering of the world, in a structure of succession recalling other Pacific sky-father and earth-mother separation narratives. Nareau also figures as an ancestor at the head of Gilbertese genealogical chants, linking cosmology directly to lineage and land claims.
Facts
Attributions
Mythic AssociationIn the version recorded by Arthur Grimble, Nareau the Elder wakes alone in a primordial darkness enclosing sky and earth stuck together, cracks it open and sets creation in motion; a younger Nareau, his son, then completes the separation of sky from earth and the ordering of the world. 1 Origins
Place of OriginGilbert Islands (present day Kiribati) 1 Origin of the NameNareau's name means Spider. 1 Function
Domain / Function Belief
TheologyPolytheistic: many gods 1 Attestation
HistoricityLegendary: known from narrative tradition, not the historical record 1 Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
This source names Micronesia directly: "Gilbertese (i-Kiribati) tradition in Micronesia."
This source names Nareau directly: "It preserves creation narratives centered on the spider-being Nareau, genealogical chants and magical practice as told to Grimble by named Gilbertese informants."
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