The Hidden Antarctic History of Polynesians 

Im of kanaka maoli decent and since I was a child I’ve had the same reoccurring dream of returning to a land of ice mountains that fills me with reverence.

Im maori this was a cool vid. We still have our dubble hulled waka, theyre called waka hourua. And when europeans were first exploring the sub Antarctic islands they did find maori living on enderby and auckland island. They were 'relocated' to the mainland of te waipounamu. ive hears stories of ancient explorers to Antarctica but never the actual stories so cheers for uploading e hoa

It sounds crazy! But… No one would have believed that they actually settled Rapa Nui or Hawaii if they weren’t still living there or hadn’t carved giant faces all over the island.

" It is a common myth that walruses are found in Antarctica. Antarctica is in the southern hemisphere, and walrus are only found in the northern hemisphere "

There are no walruses in Antartica but there are elephant seals. Unless the Polynesians adventured further north from Hawaii to the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. They are hundreds of barren, treeless rocky islands that look born from the sea. Often covered in mist and fog and in darkness half the year. Giant kelp is found there and the sea around the islands can become frozen and thus more viscus. There are icebergs as well coming from the glaciers that surround the Gulf of Alaska. I have no doubt that the Polynesians routinely sailed to Antartica from New Zealand. A more remarkable feat would be to make it to the Arctic and Alaska which is a plausable possiblity from the historic discriptions.

Knew a man from Tonga many years ago. He told me how his fathers read the waves: They first where taught how to distinguish between "wind-born" waves and the "coast-made" ones. Next was education about how the changing weather modifies both kinds. Last what kind of coast had created the "coast-made" ones. And psychological: All teaching ONLY was given at sea being surrounded by and experiencing it with ones whole body and mind.

There are no walruses in the southern hemisphere. They all live in the Arctic and the high Arctic at that.

I believe the Walrus was seen by Roratonga in what is present day Alaska. Currently a seafaring outrigger from Hawaii is voyaging around the pacific, beginning with Alaska to renew indigenous bonds! The polynesians travelled the entire Pacific

I think it’s very likely that they traveled the entire pacific but I don’t think for a moment they had any reason to settle the arctic or Antarctic.

Way to go bra! These oral traditions run deeper than many can imagine. The city of Troy was found based on myths and legends, and that verification started with one small piece of pottery. Snippets of verifiable information. That's prehistory. Keep it up! Our ancestors deserve it, as do we.

The wreck of ‘a ship of ancient design’ was observed on Macquarie Island when Europeans first arrived there. Such a pity that no details of that design were recorded.

The Polynesians were crisscrossing the Pacific long ago. The proof that they visited S. America is the sweet potato found in many Polynesians cultures through trade or brought to them. Hokule'a showed that a two hulled canoe could sail up all the way to Japan and Alaska, traversing the dangerous rough open ocean waters. They proved that by knowing the stars they were able to go to and return to their points of origin. As you stated in your video that the Maori have said that they came from a place called Hawaiki which we know as Hawai'i. I have heard of this professor at the University of Hawai'i at Hilo who brought in some Maori Elders and took them to the southernmost tip of the island, and the Maori elders chanted a chant passed down to them of how they came from a land called Hawaiki, where there were cliffs and mooring holes. Upon seeing the cliffs and mooring holes that were drilled through boulders where they could moor their canoes to, they cried as they understood that their chants were true. Hawai'i is 2,500 miles in the middle of the ocean. A people that could navigate and traverse across the largest body of water on our planet, using only sailing canoes, thousands of miles across open ocean, without maps but using the stars, is a testament to the knowledge that many of the Polynesians had to have to do so. It is learned, it is passed down, it is through experience of doing multiple times that they were able to do so. One simply cannot just go, they must return to pass on knowledge of what was found. One cannot just simply brush it off as happenstance that the S. American theory of just floating on the currents to reach Hawaii by Kuykendall is how they populated the Pacific Ocean, one has to realize that to progress, they need to return and that they need to do it on a repeated basis. To brush off any notion that they could not do this, is to be shortsighted in what an accomplishment they were able to do.

I am surprised that you mentioned that Maori pottery had been found on Sub-Antartic Islands as NZ Maori did have pottery.

In a world where clarity is often muddled, one might say, "In the midst of understanding, we find ourselves adrift in a sea of both profound insight and curiously empty echoes.”

The ocean waters circle Antarctica constantly, and are uninterrupted by other land masses, so the waves are massive and currents strong. It’s a very treacherous. Still, I do love these discussions and learning the history.

Are ancestors were great navigators 🙌

Austronesians crossed the Indian Ocean from Borneo to Madagascar and Luzon to the Marianas so it's not really impossible for them to also reach Antarctica.

I could see that French Polynesia is about as close to Antarctica as anywhere else but it would go from nice and warm to really really cold. I would turn my ship back around and go back to Tahiti! Although I guess the wildlife might be more abundant around antarctic waters, but still I would think that another Polynesian island would be a better place to move to for better fishing rather than Antarctica!

Captain Cook visited Tahiti and got to know the people. Some time after he left Captain Wallis also visited. Having read all of Wallis's notes Cook revisited Tahiti and looked for some of the islands Wallis had described. One of them he failed to find. Then while there he asked the Head Priest/Scientist, Tupaia, if he knew of this island. Tupaia said he did and under his direction Tupaia took Cook directly to the island.

I don’t doubt the Polynesians explored both ends of the Pacific. Not at all.

I am not sure of Hawaiki from NZ but Havaiki from Hawaii and Savaii (if shorten of "Savaiisi'uleo") from Samoa are closely weaven together with much similarities. Sea Navigators share similar ideas about the ocean and its provision. Very fascinating!

Walruses dont live in Antartica (only the Artic) so what animal are they looking at. The seals there don't have any tusks.

Why do people keep suggesting that metallurgy is a sign of higher intelligence? It's not.

the native people of the tip of South America could also have accidentally discovered Antarctica when fishing in the open seas

Bro this was an VERY thought provoking vid. Well done sir

There are no Walruses in the southern hemisphere. They must have made it north of Hawaii to the Aleutian islands.

Loving this one thanks for sharing very information blessed love to all knowledge is power hopefully everyone pays attention keep up the good work 🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿🇯🇲🇯🇲🇯🇲

given south America, Patagonia and Tierra del feugo to be precise have high snow covered mountains icy conditions and possible icebergs to, considering there are large glaciers coming down to the sea in places, it may be that what the Maori are describing is the South West Coast of South America, given that there is an archipelago of Islands arching upward from Antarctica top the southern tip of cape of Good Hope.

Why leave paradise only to freeze your arse off

Although I’m an Aussie I’ve spent nearly 40 years working in construction with the wonderful folks of the pacific nations. I’ve heard about this before. I’ll ask my Tongan e hoa tonight when we start our shift. No walrus in the southern hemisphere btw. Probably talking about elephant seals…

I am Tahiti, Māori mix, Born in Honolulu Hawaii. I like the video. Thank you.

I just found this video and it's great. It is great example of why the Polynesian Voyaging Society is doing with the sailing of Hawaiian canoes to see the range of travel that Polynesians can do. It's great for all those of Pacific Island descent that it is possible. I believe the current trek of the society was in Alaska recently.

GREAT VIDEO! My dad is Hawaiian royalty and my mom comes from Sinclairs and Vikings, world sailors that already discovered the world before Columbus. Everybody was traveling all over for tens of thousands of years, but the narrative they give us in America is this one directional migration out of africa.

Thanks for putting out content you are very professional and well spoken it is very much appreciated in this realm of the same shit regurgitated over and over

You’re amazing man thank u💪🏼🙏🏼

I'm pretty sure the Polynesians didn't have plastic sheets laying around

Nice Fantasy Story, Though !!!

This just blew my mind and I can’t wait to get more info on research and breakthroughs on the Antarctic mainland

I just discoveredd your channel very interesting. I subscribed.

If the Maori did indeed settle some Antarctic islands, how would they build boats, considering they have no threes on them? It's plausible that they may have ventured quite far South though.

I love how yall just put a picture of steven adams with a white beard on the thumbnail.🤣😂

Excellent Video. Thank you.

There was an article that I read a couple years back, that mentioned a discovery of a wooden boat (looked like a canoe) that was found in the artic. Might of been antarctica I dont remember clearly.

what confuses me the most is how the maori never settled Australia..

If Polynesians landed inAntarctica, they turned their ships northward and searched for green coasts.

I jst wanted to ask wea u got th foto ov tht family frm?

We still have those waka today one would be found in waitangi behind a hotel or down the bottm of the museum and marae but the actual marae the locals use is down past the bridge near the beach

I'm starting to think Polynesians and Native Americans are connected somewhere bc they were both all over the place but never got in contact until Peru I'm SA native btw

Unlikely of any concerted canoe trips to Antarctica, they would have frozen to death, especially coming from the warmer tropical climates. More critical; is why they never made it Australia?, it is after all the big southern continent close to NZ. But no, no recorded evidence of anything.

Very interesting story, totally possible that happen, glad i disovered your channel.

Absolutely fascinating! Thank you!

Yeah no. While it probably could have been a cool thing to see, Antarctica was NEVER settled by ANY human. No evidence exists for any kind of settlement and if the region was too cold for even the Europeans to set up colonies with their thick winter clothes and more cold adapted traits, Maori whom are used to warm climate conditions definitely would have not survived. They may have realized Antarctica was there even if it is unlikely, but they NEVER explored or settled there.

You are a good storyteller.

“ Tahi Fatu “ means, Thick Ocean ! This is Ordinary Every Day Polynesia Language ! No Mystery Here !!!

This is a great video, good job. Just really want to point this out since this is a very maori centered subject and maybe there isnt much illustration depicting ancient seafaring maori ppl but at the 8 min mark that illustration is actually uniquely to hawaiian.

How did they survive the trip there?? The waters down there are deadly rough...

I do think theres a ancient connection witth the Inuit and the Polynesian people of the pacific..The Kaitaia carving unearthed in new Zealand looks similar to the carvings from the natives that live through out Alaska and down through Canada..

Very interesting, alot to think about

Appreciate the knowledge.. hope we can make a team to finally rest are case

Polynesians have ancestry to the Phoenicians (1500 - 300 BC) i think this is why we were seafarers, we used the sea to trade with other people around a lot of areas typically around the mediterranean area.

Six seals (Pinnipeds) species live in the Antarctic ~ Ross ,Weddel,Crabeater,Leopard, Fur, Elephant ~

Amazing 👏

Obviously Polynesians are the greatest navigators ever, they discovered every rock in the Pacific- BUT how did they know the shape of NZ is a fish and a canoe? You can only see that from the air.

3.30 the walrus.... doesn't it lives on the Northern Hemisphere? Just asking. By the way, I think Patagonia is also closer to the Antarctic

I've seen old maps from 13 14 and 1500s. Some of which depicted Antarctica as "magellanica" and showed people there with red hair and riding on animals. Same maps depict africans in correctly also crocodiles. Depicted native Americans and other peoples in the correct areas. So the fact Antarctica was shown with people, as well as no ice. Is telling

I heard that just after fishing up the north island they took off to 😊antarctica but found it to cold so headed back home after stopping in the chatham islands for refreshments

Awesome thanks for the intresting information 👍Northwest pasific coast history10,000 years of evolution is a pretty interesting video as well

I've a theory, which is not getting much traction 😞In the New Zealand High Commission in London there is a huge totem pole. Of course we usually associate Totem Poles with the Pacific Northwest. They are a tradition in some areas of the PPacific

Im a Maori from Taranaki but live in Tauranga now, anyway i liked the video bro, have a look for a doco made in nz about the red hared giants skeletons and 2000 year old stone walls scattered around the Waipua forest up north and the Taupo wall, Its called skeletons in the cubboard or closet, its a 2 part doco but you could revisit this for another video perhaps? would love to see it if so haha

To me it sounds like they encountered the kinda crappy sub-antarctic islands like South Georgia and the little seamounts that stick up. The sea ice is also clearly a big part of it, and its worth noting that these are really old stories so the ice may have been forming or extending at different latitudes back then.

Im a maori . In my life i have heard my people talk some crap . But this one takes the cake 😮

I thought this was an actual history channel until I heard "Ruins in Antarctica", then I saw your other content. Antarctica has been frozen solid since the Miocene Epoch. What would your hypothetical civilization live on? Building materials? Fuel? Channels like this just feed into fantasy and mislead folks from actual historical discoveries...

Beyond Rapa could mean South America, where you find Patagonia, with Glaciers on the sea and mountains that Pearce the Sky's. The Animal that dives to great depths is obviously a Sperm Whale. I do wonder if infact this story came from a whaling ship by Polynesian crew that had already traveled on such ships by 1904. Otherwise there is the small genetic link between the Polynesians and South Americans. And the Kumara, and the Mythology of Maui where he visited the Mountains in the East. It seems to me much more likely than Antarctica.

Lots of good stuff in your video bro. Thanks 🥝🇳🇿😎

I am maori i did my ancestral research that lead me to search for hawaiki and i believe we come from voyagers who left antartica once a tropical place which changed due to the shift of continents they needed to voyage due to ice and freezing over of lands moving up from the further eastern part of antarica moving up through and around polynesian triangle i believe if we could scientifically study antartica we would find where polynesians started their migration from however due to western and eastern views they refuse to help study antartica because it will unravel the fact polynesian people are antartic people

The Polynesians did not know how to condense water from saltwater, they didn't even have plastic so what would they have used? You just made that up

You show pottery saying it’s Māori. Māori didn’t fire pottery. Your research is bad

My brother Rarotonga is Cook islands 🇨🇰 Tonga 🇹🇴 is a neighbouring island in the pacific. Idk if you mixed the two but in cook islands , our trip to NZ ,the end of polynesia we lost a canoe to nz, 6 made it , 1 went missing. But we believe we were experts that we missed nz and found another island either being your theory or Australia 🇦🇺. Cheers bro from cook island

I think it is possible Polynesians arrived in Antarctica, they were pretty complex people. Seems unlikely they settled there I'd say. Some rationale: Polynesians were masters of the sea. Sir Peter Buck described them as the 'Vikings of the Sunrise'. They used an early navigational sextant [a 'Tanawa'], had huge double-hulled craft, were crewed by men and women [for seeding new lands], and made clothing from fibres, feathers and furs, and also made footwear. For example, winter footwear was made from scraped flax, padded or double-padded with raupo [similar to cat-tails], and then giant sandals over the top. They made leggings of harakeke, with padding of dried grasses and raupo wrapped beneath. They made winter cloaks out of dog and seal skin lined with feathers with ties to cinch it tighter, and used woven thatch-like capes to keep out heavy rain. They even fashioned hats called 'potae' which was a helmet-shaped flax hat with ear flaps and a peaked ridge along the top. It is said that some Ancient Maori called the currents of the Pacific Ocean 'The Long Tides'. For example, the Southern Equatorial Current was referred to as 'Te Tai Mahunui', and the West Wind Drift 'Te Tai Ara Roa'. To sail The Long Tides was reffered to as 'Riding The Whale', because ancient Maori used the feeding and breeding patterns of the 'White Whale' and 'White Dolphin' to show them how to safely navigate across the Pacific, and avoid the dreaded 'Octopus'[giant deadly Pacific whirlpools]. Each waka [twin-hulled timber sea-craft] had 88 men and women in each hull, sat in pairs, with 40 on each side, plus 4 general helpers. One crew of 88 paddled or took up the sail with the whale, and the other crew of 88 followed the dolphin; the crew changing when their designated guide appeared. One crew worked the day, the other working through the night. The dolphin ran in calm waters with undisturbed currents, and the whale hunted turbulent waters where tides would meet and be chaotic. The captain followed the whales through disturbed currents to keep the waka from being destroyed in the whirlpools. To summon the whale for navigation, the captain would craft a simple trumpet from harakeke called an 'oaro' to mimic the call of a baby whale in distress. The dolphin was called by the capatin by pressing their mouth against the submerged oar and making a distress call of their young, sending the vibrations into the sea and sometime throwing crushed mussels into the water. These tides took them between New Zealand, Easter Island, South America and who knows where else.

Patagonian Indians may have accidently washed up in Antarctica, and then...never made it back...because they werent skilled navigators. You can imagine Maori sailors accidently finding Antarctica, making it back to NZ using their navigation skills, and then others hearing the word that there is a landmass far to south making subsequent trips. But then these later Moari adventureres to Antarctica would figure out that the new landmass was (a)useless for agriculture...but great as a temporary base for whaling, and for hunting those funny big fat dog like mammals that live in the water (ie seals). But the Moari would have lacked the infrastructure to support temporary bases like that. Nor would they have the time to evolve an eskimo type lifestyle to permanently live off sea mammals, and nothing but sea mammals, on a coastal polar tundra the way the Inuit do on the opposite side of the world. So its hard to imagine a Moari colonization of Antarctica amounting to much of historic significance.

Why are these pseudohistory channel so calming even if they're peppered with bs? I can see why people can be fooled to believe these channels count as factual.

Great video we do need to keep in mind that the ocean waters were much lower then they are today.

In Rapa Nuian history they talk about a "white Canoe" that Hotu Matua (the founder of Rapa Nui) will return on so they could be taken to another land, could they be referring to an ice berg? So interesting to think maybe Hotu Matua landed in Antarctica and thats the land they were talking about.

Changing history for gain,

The Southern Ocean - possible. Antarctica itself - unlikely. Those waters are terribly dangerous, freezing, stormy, unpredictable. What landmasses there are are barren like Macquerie. Why exactly would the Maori sailors risk going though that? Likely head back to their homeland.

Awesome info bro

Te-Au-Tanga-Nuku, Tangiia Nui, Kupe, Toi, Te-Tua-Tarangi, Karika, and many more Cook Islands ancestors explored the South Pole seas. Thus we have words for snow (Kiona) and some animals which they had come across during their voyage. According to our Polynesian history, Samoa and Marquesas Islands were one of the 1st Islands colonised by our Maori Ancestors eventually spreading out towards Tahiti, Hawaii, Cook Islands and eventually the last major migration was Aotearoa (New Zealand)

Out of all of Polynesia Tongans where the greatest warriors / sea travelers

Walrus or Sea-Elephant... you are aware that these 2 are completely different animals?

04:25. Where you get that pic? Is it CGI?

Thanks, nteresting

whenever you're looking to a book from 1904 written by a coloniser about indigenous peoples you should think twice about its accuracy. percy smith is well known for combining and fictionalising oral histories and we've spent a century undoing the misunderstandings spread by his writing. there's evidence of polynesian explorers in most of the pacific. they probably reached america and australia. they reached the auckland islands and the chathams (no pottery though). they may have seen sea ice on their travels. there's no evidence of any sighting of antarctica until the 1820s.

There are many many inaccuracies and mistakes here. Besides numerous stretches in logic in what those tales mean exactly, there are also no walruses in the southern hemisphere. And the marakai-hau in Maori folklore is not anything like a walrus. It doesn't even have a pair of tusks, that is a misrepresentation. I also highly doubt the Maori would have had any reason to go to Antarctica or go southwards. The sub-Antarctic islands where the Maori could presumably have used as stopping points don't have any evidence of Polynesian settlement.

You’re amazing man thank u💪🏼🙏🏼❤ U know your stuff👉🏼🧠😉👌🏼✅

fascinating

Try to get your facts right. New Zealand is 4868 KILOMETRES from Antarctica, not 4000 MILES. 03:25 Bull Kelp in the tropics ? New Zealand is 4500km from the equator/tropics and has HUGE amounts of kelp !

The folks of Cape Horn were much closer, kinda missed that bit. Perhaps a little bit of fanciful embellishment methinks

Correct dude oral history in some families from Rarotonga Cook islands there ancestors suggested a reconnaissance and she'll term ceremony efficient and return to home land ...yes on it.

If they got to 500 miles of Antarctica. There is no doubt in my mind that they could have reached Antarctica or at least they got so close to it that they could observe the environment from the sea and lived to tell the tales.

You don't get Walrus in the Antarctic 😂