Polynesian Voyaging Canoe

Timeline

1. 1000–1180Samoa–Tonga hub · SamoaCatamarans and single-outrigger sailcraft enabled Pacific Islanders to migrate across oceans to distant settlements such as Hawaii, New Zealand, and the Chatham Islands, forming a wide Polynesian cultural sphere.
2. 1181–1190Coast of Tahiti · Society IslandsLarge clan societies maintained inter-island trade and marriage routes; canoes carried pottery, stone tools, food, and people. Navigation knowledge was passed orally by navigators (tōfuga va'a), closely tied to star charts and memories of ocean currents.
3. 1769–2000Honolulu, Hawaii · HawaiiTraditional long-distance voyaging declined after the introduction of Western ships; from the 1970s, Hawaii and elsewhere rebuilt double-hulled sailcraft and completed voyages without modern instruments, revalidating ancient navigation skills.