9. The beginning of the year was on Easter Island connected with the arrival of Manu Tara birds to the 3 islets outside the southwesten corner of the island (cfr at manu kake and at vaha kai), which does not take place at midsummer but earlier in spring. This sea swallow species - which so to say 'swallows' the winter season - was very important for the islanders, announcing the arrival of summer far more evidently than Antares.

In Manuscript E there is an account of the 16 different kinds of birds (20 of each) which Hotu Matua brought with him to the island:

manu tara	*tavake*
*pi riuriu*	*ruru*
*kava eoeo*	*taiko*
*te verovero*	*kumara*
*ka araara*	*kiakia*
*kukuru toua*	*tuvi*
*makohe*	*tuao*
*kena*	*tavi*

Each bird name was preceded by he (also he tavake), and we should notice the exceptional he te verovero.

I have coloured manu tara red because it stands at the beginning of the year, when Sun returns from the north. The following 4 names refer to the different ages of the young manu tara birds:

Manu tara

Sooty tern. The names of the age levels of the sooty tern were earlier used as children's names (Routledge). These names were (Barthel): pi(u) riuriu, kava 'eo'eo, te verovero, and ka 'ara'ara. Fischer.

Therefore manu tara occupies the first 5 of the 16 positions in the list. And the first 8 names on the list can be read as 5 ('fire) + 3 (spring sun).

He Tavake is the first bird of the 2nd half, presumably not only on the list but also of the year.

With manu tara birds connected to the 3 islets in the southwestern corner of the island it would seem natural to locate tavake somewhere in the northeastern corner. However, Ga Tavake is one of the 3 islets:

"A fragment of the traditional account of Hau Maka in Ms. A (NA II: Fig. 129) lists the three sons of Te Taanga as 'Ga Tavake A Taaga, Te Ohiro A Te Taaga, (and) Haú A Te Taaga' ..." (Barthel 2)

Maybe Haú refers to the equator, Te Ohiro to the tropic of Cancer, and Ga Tavake to the tropic of Capricorn. Purely a guess.