Hainuwele
Coconut girl whose murder gave rise to staple foods and social order.
Hainuwele, also called "The Coconut Girl," appears in the origin myths of the Wemale and Alune peoples on Seram, an island in Indonesia's Maluku Islands. Her story was documented by German ethnologist Adolf E. Jensen, who collected it during a 1937–38 expedition to the region for the Frobenius Institute. Jensen’s study of this myth, as part of his broader research on religious sacrifice, led him to introduce the concept of the Dema deity to ethnology. The legend was later brought to an English-speaking audience by Joseph Campbell in *The Masks of God*.
The myth begins with a hunter named Ameta, who belonged to one of the nine original families of the West Ceram people—families that had themselves emerged from nine different types of trees or plants. While hunting, Ameta found a coconut caught in the tusk of a wild boar, a fruit previously unknown on Seram. He brought it home. That night, a figure appeared in a dream and told him to plant it. Ameta did so, and within days the coconut grew into a tall tree and bloomed. When he climbed the tree to cut flowers for sap, he cut his finger, and his blood dripped onto a blossom. Nine days later, a girl appeared where the blossom had been. Ameta named her Hainuwele, meaning "Coconut Branch," wrapped her in a sarong, and took her home. She grew to adulthood with astonishing speed and had a peculiar talent: her feces were valuable items, making her a source of wealth for the community.
Hainuwele attended a nine-night dance at a place called Tamene Siwa. Traditionally, girls at this dance gave areca nuts to the men. But when the men asked Hainuwele for nuts, she gave them the valuable objects she could excrete instead. Each day, she offered something larger and more precious: golden earrings, coral, porcelain dishes, bush-knives, copper boxes, and gongs. At first, the men were pleased, but over time they grew uneasy and jealous. They decided to kill her on the ninth night. During the dances, the men circled the women in the center of the dance ground, where Hainuwele handed out gifts. Before the final night, the men dug a pit in the middle of the dance ground. As the dance progressed, they pushed Hainuwele inward until she fell into the pit. They quickly buried her alive, covering her cries with their singing, and kept dancing, stomping the earth firm.
Ameta, missing Hainuwele, searched for her. Through an oracle, he
- field
- Folklore / Mythology
- culture
- Wemale and Alune peoples, Seram, Maluku Islands, Indonesia
- known_for
- Origin myth of the Dema deity concept; creation of tuberous crops and social divisions
- recorded_by
- Adolf E. Jensen (Frobenius Institute expedition, 1937–38)
- first_english_narration
- Joseph Campbell, The Masks of God
Quick Facts
- God Of
- Deity that gave origin to the main vegetable crops
- Abode
- Seram
- Symbol
- Coconut flower
- Parents
- Ameta (Father)
- Mount
- none
- Affiliation
- Origin myths, Phosop
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Hainuwele was discovered by a man named Ameta, who found a coconut caught in a wild boar's tusk—a fruit never before seen on Seram. Following a dream, Ameta planted the coconut, which grew into a tree. When he cut its flowers to collect sap, his blood fell on a blossom, and nine days later a girl appeared there. Ameta named her Hainuwele, meaning 'Coconut Branch,' and she grew rapidly. She had the remarkable ability to excrete valuable items, making her a source of wealth for the community.
Reader's Guide
The Hainuwele myth is significant as an origin myth that explains the creation of staple foods, the mortality of humans, and the division of the Wemale people into the Patalima and Patasiwa groups. Adolf E. Jensen used the myth to introduce the concept of the Dema deity in ethnology, arguing that such deities are typical of early plant-cultivation cultures and that their ritual murder and burial give rise to food crops. However, recent research disputes the term 'Dema deity' in this context, preferring to define the story as an origin myth rather than a creation myth, and questions the cross-cultural parallels Jensen drew. Social anthropological interpretations emphasize that Hainuwele's gifts, though valuable, had an unclean origin (defecation) and were foreign objects not produced on Seram before the 16th century, though archaeological evidence shows that ceramics, bronze drums, and gongs were present in the region much earlier. The myth continues to be studied for its insights into the relationship between myth, ritual, and social structure.
Did You Know?
- Hainuwele's name means 'Coconut Branch' in the local language.
- The myth was recorded by German ethnologist Adolf E. Jensen following the Frobenius Institute's 1937–38 expedition to the Maluku Islands.
- After being killed and dismembered, Hainuwele's buried body parts grew into various useful plants, including tubers.
- Some indigenous versions of the myth describe the woman producing food and valuables from her menstrual blood or vagina rather than through defecation.
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