The article examines how Takū position the canoe in their understanding of the past and exploit it to achieve temporary individual prominence within an otherwise egalitarian society. The canoe on Takū exists in two spheres of reference: in the collective memory of two bygone eras preserved largely in fragmented mythology and ancient song lyrics, and as the item of contemporary material culture crucially involved in the economic life of the small community, whose fishing exploits and the skills of its builders and crews fill the lyrics of hundreds of songs in the active repertoire. The dearth of published information on Takū generally and its canoes in particular is offset by the strength of its oral tradition, which recounts and interprets the activities of two canoe types revered but never seen, as well as two more currently in use. As arguably the last location where Polynesian religion is still practiced as the norm, it is also possible to examine the roles of ritual and belief in the canoe’s prominence, in particular the connections between voyagers, builders and ancestor spirits. In unequivocal statements most frequently formalised in song lyrics, creators and users of a canoe can be successful, let alone achieve enduring fame, only if they know and use the appropriate invocations, acknowledging as they do so the social force of precedent. At least in part, the ongoing significance of the canoe, particularly the manner in which it is used, depends on maintenance of such precedent.

中文翻译：

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口头传统与高ak独木舟

本文考察了塔库（Takū）如何将独木舟置于对过去的理解中，并利用独木舟在原本是平等的社会中实现暂时的个人地位。Takū上的独木舟存在两个参考领域：在两个过去时代的集体记忆中，这些时代主要保存在支离破碎的神话和古代歌曲歌词中，并且作为当代物质文化的一个项目，与小社区的经济生活息息相关，开发人员和工作人员的功绩和技巧充斥着活跃曲目中数百首歌曲的歌词。总体而言，关于塔科的信息缺乏，尤其是其独木舟的缺乏，被其口头传统的力量所抵消，该传统叙述和解释了两种受人尊敬但从未见过的独木舟的活动，以及目前正在使用的另外两种独木舟。作为可以说仍然是波利尼西亚宗教作为规范的最后一个场所，也有可能考察仪式和信仰在独木舟突出中的作用，特别是航海家，建造者和祖先精神之间的联系。在最经常用歌曲歌词形式化的明确表述中，独木舟的创造者和使用者可以成功，更不用说获得持久的名声了，前提是他们知道并使用适当的调用，并因此而承认先例的社会力量。至少部分地，独木舟的持续意义，特别是其使用方式，取决于维持这种先例。尤其是航海家，建造者和祖先精神之间的联系。在最经常用歌曲歌词形式化的明确表述中，独木舟的创造者和使用者可以成功，更不用说获得持久的名声了，前提是他们知道并使用适当的调用，并因此而承认先例的社会力量。至少部分地，独木舟的持续意义，特别是其使用方式，取决于维持这种先例。尤其是航海家，建造者和祖先精神之间的联系。在最经常用歌曲歌词形式化的明确表述中，独木舟的创造者和使用者可以成功，更不用说获得持久的名声了，前提是他们知道并使用适当的调用，并因此而承认先例的社会力量。至少部分地，独木舟的持续意义，特别是其使用方式，取决于维持这种先例。