Kamapua'a
Kamapua'a OceaniaLiterally, ‘hog-child’. A popular figure in Hawaiian mythology. With his enormous snout he dug the earth and ‘raised a great mound, a hill for the gods, a hill with a precipice in front’. Possibly this legend refers to a stronghold belonging to a powerful family of the pig god's descendants.
Despite numerous attempts on the life of infant Kamapua'a, he grew up into an energetic and powerful deity. He would uproot with his snout the crops of his enemies, defeat them in battle, savagely wielding a club in his human hands, and carry off as booty all their valuables. A welcome ally in the interminable wars of Hawaii, Kamapua'a married the two daughters of a leading chief and rendered him loyal service on the battlefield, capturing the ‘feather capes and helmets’ of many rival chiefs.
Once, as a handsome man, Kamapua'a attempted to woo the fire goddess Pele. She refused him with insults, calling him ‘pig and the son...
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