NGARU

[Polynesian] A great hero from Polynesian mythology. He dared the king of the sharks, Tumuitearetoka, to catch him, but the shark was never able to because Ngaru invented the surfboard. Ngaru married Tongatea but when she beheld him, she was so shocked that she fled. Ngaru was black and entirely hairless. He went to a limepit where he blanched himself. At the request of his grandfather Moko, the god Tangaroa gave him nice wavy locks. When he presented himself before the fair Tongatea, she immediately fell in love with him.