An anthology of books on the traditional and ancestry of Aitutaki offering a collection of stories and knowledge about the history and heritage of the island was unveiled last month. Melina Etches reports.

The anthology was meticulously created by the late Benjamin “Dunromin” George Nicholls Sr fondly known as “Ben” over 46 years, researching and collating, bringing together various writings and accounts on the customs, traditions, and ancestral knowledge of Aitutaki.

The five books are titled – Te-Au-Ate-Toroa, Te Au Pe’e Aitutaki-E-Te-Au-Aite’anga, Avaiki Te Pu-Penga, The Exoteric Gnostics of Aitutaki, Te Au Pe’e Aitutaki – were launched by Tauranga Vananga Ministry of Cultural Development in December 2023.

Nicholls’ wife Tekura Tara Ki Rangi Make Nicholls, his children including his eldest son Patrick Akaiti Arioka, his brother and Airport Fire Service manager George Nicholls, Bishop Tutai Pere and Bishop Paul Donoghue, family and friends attended the small, significant launch a fortnight ago.

Arioka, along with his siblings Nicky Mokoenga Nicholls, Jessy Nicholls, Pearl Nicholls, Ana Nicholls, Benjamin Jr Nicholls, and David Nicholls, expressed their shared pride in their father’s achievement and the legacy he has left behind for them and future generations to learn from.

“One thing that stood out for us in this journey of his great work that we have paid tribute to is that finally we have a written and well research-proven work that the people of Aitutaki can be proud of,” said Arioka. “That our history has not only been written, but has also been put right – the truth of our history, and for me that’s important.”

Arioka, a former Member of Parliament, Cabinet Minister, and researcher, said he could relate to his late father’s frustration during his research work.

“Not having a baseline to compare your research findings can be very difficult unless you can find physical evidence to prove your work, which he has done,” he said.

“We are proud of his accomplishments, as a great orator extraordinaire, and Tumu Korero who was very knowledgeable of our traditions and customs, as well as the protocols since he was an Investiture Taunga and Orator for the Rupe-Toa-Tauira-Ariki tribe of Makea Nui Ariki of Rarotonga.”

Arioka said his father’s love of books goes back to his very young days spending a lot of time in the library, which is also when he developed a passion for poetry.

“We have some of his poems that reference Cook Islands culture and environment that we are collating today and hopefully we will have the opportunity to publish these as his next book,” he said.

In the early 70s, between the ages of 20 and 24, Nicholls Sr, at the request of his father Tumutoa Arangiau George Nicholls, represented him at a traditional Mataipo meeting held on Rarotonga.

Arioka said it was during this period that his father experienced both pleasant surprise at the depth of our culture and disappointment at the scarcity of written information on Cook Islands traditions and culture.

“He realised that most of our history and culture were oral folklore literature that is spoken or sung as opposed to what was written,” said Arioka.

“Instantaneously, he developed a new passion which was to start collecting and researching our own culture, history, poems, and chants.

“He had the opportunity to visit museums abroad … and he also questioned the journals of the early missionaries to the Cook Islands, even more so on their opinions of our societal way of life that they in his opinion did not understand and failed to document the real essence and meaning of the way we live and survive as Māori.”

In his books, Nicholls Sr notes his journey while researching and collating his work, and the interesting people he met along the way who also faced the same dilemma and asked the same questions.

Fifty sets of books (five books in each set) were printed in Auckland, New Zealand, by Pages Design & Print Services Limited in March 2022, funded by Tauranga Vananga.

Justina Nicholas, director of Tauranga Vananga’s National Museum/Runanga Pakau, expressed the ministry’s pride in supporting Nicholls’ books. She also noted his talent as a carver, whose works are featured in the museum.

Chief librarian Odile Urirau also expressed her delight in seeing Cook Islands authors write about their own history.

Emphasising that the Punanga Puka (Library) is not just a place that stores books, she said “it is a place of knowledge, of identity, of culture”.

Urirau further noted Arioka’s address, where his father challenged him with the quote, “This is mine … where is yours?” She interpreted this as an encouragement for younger generations to continue researching and writing about their own history.

Nicholls was born on September 17, 1953 to parents Tumutoa Arangiau George Nicholls and Florrie David McBirney. He passed away on September 17, 2023 on his 70^th birthday.