Harry Maitey

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Drawing by Johann Gottfried Schadow , chalk and graphite, October 26, 1824

The name Harry Maitey was given to the first Hawaiian (born April 23, 1807 in the Kingdom of Hawai'i ; † February 26, 1872 in Klein-Glienicke ) who came to Prussia by Germans. According to Wilhelm von Humboldt's notes , he gave Teoni as his father's name and Bete as his mother's. He married Dorothea Charlotte Becker from Stolpe on August 28, 1833. Her son Heinrich Wilhelm Otto (* December 2, 1837) and his younger sister Friederike Wilhelmine (* 1846) died as small children, while their second son, Heinrich Wilhelm Eduard (* 8. December 1839, † 1906) survived his parents. His daughter Martha (* 1869), Maitey's only grandchild, reached adulthood and remained unmarried.

Life

origin

Little is known about Maitey's life in the Kingdom of Hawaii. The information on his Hawaiian name Kaparena is not confirmed by other sources. When the commercial frigate Mentor from Bremen arrived in Honolulu on November 28, 1823 , the day before the French whaler L'Aigle had left the port with the Hawaiian King Liholiho and his Queen Kamāmalu. While the king was absent, to chiefs gathered from other islands on O'ahu , and even the death of Keoua, the governor of Maui , caused an atmosphere of political unrest. It is not known whether this situation led Maitey to ask to be taken aboard the Mentor , the first Prussian ship to both circled the world and visited Hawaii. The inquiries made about the youth confirmed that he had no relatives and was allowed to leave Hawaii. The name Maitey was recorded by the Germans as Henry's (or Harry's) family name, but it is obvious that this is a derivative of the Hawaiian maikaʻi or maitaʻi and not his actual name.

Trip to Prussia

For the voyage, the ship was chartered by the Prussian Sea Trade and was the first to be bought by its own fleet while the voyage was still in progress. Since the sea deal was the Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm III. after the mentor's arrival in Świnoujście on September 14, 1824, the king was informed about the sandwich islander and on September 27, he decided that the president of the maritime trade, Christian Rother, had to bring him to Berlin . Maitey stayed there in Rother's house until the king decided on October 15 that he should learn the German language and be brought up according to the principles of Christianity.

education

Card with the educational institution in front of the Hallesches Tor (1848)

Maitey lived with President Rother's family until 1827, when he moved to the house of education in front of Hallesches Tor , a school facility that he had attended since 1825. In 1827 Maitey was invited to talk to Wilhelm von Humboldt about the Hawaiian language , the results of which Humboldt first presented in 1828 at the Berlin Academy of Sciences. The sandwich dictionary created on the basis of the conversations served von Humboldt as the basis of his research on the Malayo-Polynesian languages and Maitey as his most important source for Hawaiian.

From the fall of 1829 he had a Hawaiian companion in the house of education for about eight months: Jony Kahopimeai, who had come to Germany on the Prussian ship Princess Louise . After Maitey began his service on Peacock Island, Jony visited him occasionally, but in February 1831 he fell ill, died of pneumonia and was buried on March 2, 1831.

Service on the Pfaueninsel

Maitey was baptized and confirmed on April 23, 1830. At baptism he was given the German name Heinrich Wilhelm . In August Maitey was taken over into the royal household and assigned as assistant to the machine master on Pfaueninsel . The files led him as the king's ward and assistant to the machinist . There is also a suggestion in the documents that Maitey should become the ferryman of the Peacock Island, but apparently the task ultimately assigned offered him much better prospects.

In the summer of 1834 two Hawaiian geese (nēnē) came to the island, which had also been brought to Germany on the ship Princess Louise .

The machine master Franciscus Joseph Friedrich trained Maitey to be a turner, locksmith and carpenter.

After some difficulties Maitey got the royal permission to marry with the help of Christian Rother and married Dorothea Charlotte Becker on August 25, 1833 in the church of Stolpe . After the wedding, the couple moved to Klein-Glienicke , so Maitey now had to travel a long way to work on Pfaueninsel. Later he was absent more and more often, which led to difficulties in his relationship with Friedrich. Finally it was decided to assign Maitey to the royal gardener Gustav I. Adolph Fintelmann .

While working under Master Friedrich, Maitey apparently helped him make miniature replicas of famous castles and cathedrals from ivory and mother-of-pearl . The part of his carving skills seemed to be indispensable, because it was later discovered that Friedrich no longer made models after his assistant Maitey had left him. It is also believed that Maitey was the artist who created some yellow room dividers in the castle, which are also attributed to Friedrich.

Late years and offspring

Grave of Harry Maitey: inscription for himself and his wife
Grave of Harry Maitey: inscription for his in-laws

Maitey spent the rest of his life in Klein-Glienicke (Kurfürstenstrasse 10). He died at the age of 64 from smallpox on February 26, 1872 in his home as a pensioner of the king. His grave is in the small cemetery not far from the Church of St. Peter and Paul on Nikolskoe near the Peacock Island and is also the final resting place of his wife and in-laws. The inscriptions on the grave cross read:

“Here rests in God / Mrs. Dorothea Maitey geb. Becker 1889. / The Sandwich Islander Maiteÿ 1872.
Here rest in God / the Thierwart Becker couple, in-laws of the sandwich islander Maiteÿ. "

Maitey's son Eduard believed that his father was a Hawaiian prince. Caesar von der Ahé, who had published articles on Maitey in 1930 and 1933, doubted this. Von der Ahé mentioned Maiteys Kaparena as a likely Hawaiian name , but there is no evidence of this in Prussian documents. He also wrote with reference to files from the former Prussian court that Maitey's father was a soldier.

It is unknown whether Maitey's widow or Eduard had the opportunity to see King Kalākaua during his visit to Berlin and Potsdam in August 1881. Eduard worked as an actuary in Angermünde for some time before he returned to Potsdam for the rest of his life.

Cultural characteristics

Maitey may have understood his relationship with the president of the maritime trade Christian Rother as the customary adoption (hānai) in his homeland. This also explains the misunderstandings in 1829 and 1830, when Maitey hoped in vain to return to the Rothers household.

A newspaper report from 1824 shows that Maitey introduced the Berlin audience to a hula , which was danced while sitting (hula noho) :

“When he is invited to sing, he is almost as gracious as our young ladies, and also has the other bad habit of having to give him good words before he stops, once he has started singing. While singing, he sits on a chair, u. makes lively movements with his hands, and it seemed to me remarkable that he often beat his heart with his right hand, while he never touched the right side with his left. His singing was limited to four or five tones, and the words seemed to consist primarily of the sounds ae, i, and o, his voice has nothing raspy, you could call it a pleasant tenor voice, but the performance of the song with these made strange things Movements give the impression of seeing a madman. "

- In: Königlich Priviligierte Berlinische Zeitung von Staats und schehrten things, Im Verlage Vossischer Erben. 245th piece. Monday, October 18th, 1824.

Johann Gottfried Schadow , who was very interested in physiognomics , drew Maitey in 1824 and stated about his appearance:

“Since the same person stayed with us, the appearance shows everyone that nothing deviating from ours can be perceived in their facial features. The broad cheekbones are also found in us, and although his skull is narrower, it is hidden by the strong and thick hair; what makes him somewhat different is the darker skin color. He did not find himself suitable for a finer intellectual education. "

- Johann Gottfried Schadow : Gottfried Schadow: Polyklet or from the Maasen of the people according to gender and age with indication of the real natural size according to the Rhineland folding rule and treatise on the differences in facial features and head formation of the peoples of the earth, as a continuation of the above by Peter Camper started by Gottfried Schadow. Berlin 1834, pp. 26/27.

literature

Web links

Commons : Harry Maitey  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A "given" date after the April 1830 baptismal certificate
  2. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, p. 150
  3. ^ Michaela Appel: Wilhelm von Humboldt and Harry Maitai: Hawaiian language studies in Berlin . In: Ulrike Folie, Volker Heeschen, Frank Zimmer, Tilman Borsche (eds.): Wilhelm von Humboldt: South Sea and Southeast Asian Languages: Preliminary work for "About the Kawi language on the island of Java" (=  Writings on Linguistics / Wilhelm von Humboldt ; founded by Kurt Mueller-Vollmer; edited by Tilman Borsche and others; 6th department: Austronesian languages ​​/ department editor: Volker Heeschen; 1st volume ). Ferdinand Schöningh, Paderborn 2017, ISBN 978-3-506-73995-7 , p. 435-451 . , P. 440.
  4. ↑ a b c Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, p. 155
  5. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, p. 151; Footnote 117, p. 160
  6. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, p. 127; Footnote 12, p. 156
  7. ↑ a b c Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, p. 127
  8. ↑ good, all right, good-looking, beautiful, fair, healthy; see. maika'i in Hawaiian Dictionaries
  9. ↑ Heinz Burmester: Circumnavigation under the Prussian flag: the Royal Prussian Sea Trade and its Ships , Hamburg: Kabel, 1988, ISBN 978-3-8225-0062-0 , p. 22.
  10. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, pp. 128-130
  11. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, 130
  12. ↑ Wilfried M. Heidemann: The Sandwich Islander Maitey from the Pfaueninsel: The life story of a Hawaiian immigrant in Berlin and near Potsdam from 1824 to 1872. In: Mitteilungen des Verein für die Geschichte Berlins , 80th year, issue 2 (April 1984) , Pp. 153-172, pp. 159-160.
  13. ↑ cf. Today in Kreuzberg: May 4th - The Boys´ Borstal School before the gate to Halle ( Memento from July 15, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
  14. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, pp. 136-137
  15. ↑ Wilhelm von Humboldt to Christian von Rother, April 15, 1827 ( Memento of March 3, 2019 in the Internet Archive )
  16. ^ Michaela Appel: Wilhelm von Humboldt and Harry Maitai: Hawaiian language studies in Berlin . In: Ulrike Folie, Volker Heeschen, Frank Zimmer, Tilman Borsche (eds.): Wilhelm von Humboldt: South Sea and Southeast Asian Languages: Preliminary work for "About the Kawi language on the island of Java" (=  Writings on Linguistics / Wilhelm von Humboldt ; founded by Kurt Mueller-Vollmer; edited by Tilman Borsche and others; 6th department: Austronesian languages ​​/ department editor: Volker Heeschen; 1st volume ). Ferdinand Schöningh, Paderborn 2017, ISBN 978-3-506-73995-7 , p. 435-451 . , P. 437.
  17. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, pp. 138-139
  18. ^ Georg Reutter: Wilhelm von Humboldt's linguistic system: his position in the history of linguistics . Universität Hamburg, Hamburg January 10, 2007 (accessed October 13, 2016). , P. 68
  19. ↑ cited as Harres Maitai in various publications of Humboldt: Georg Reutter: Wilhelm von Humboldt's linguistic system: its position in the history of linguistics . Universität Hamburg, Hamburg January 10, 2007 (accessed October 13, 2016). , P. 377
  20. ↑ "The most important sources on Humboldt's last path are William Mariner for Tongan (a shipwrecked man), Thomas Kendall for New Zealand (a missionary) and Harres Maitai for Hawaiian (a native)." Georg Reutter: Wilhelm von Humboldt's linguistic system : His position in the history of linguistics . Universität Hamburg, Hamburg January 10, 2007 (accessed October 13, 2016). , P. 231
  21. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, p. 145
  22. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, p. 149
  23. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, p. 146
  24. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, pp. 143-144
  25. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, pp. 146-147
  26. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, p. 148
  27. ↑ a b Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, p. 147
  28. ↑ Wilfried M. Heidemann: The Sandwich Islander Maitey from the Pfaueninsel: The life story of a Hawaiian immigrant in Berlin and near Potsdam from 1824 to 1872. Announcements from the Society for the History of Berlin, 80th year, No. 2 (April 1984): Pp. 153-172, cf. P. 163 and footnote 65 on p. 171: Church book Stolpe 1833, no. 2 ; according to Anneliese Moore on August 28, cf. Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125–161, pp. 149–150 and footnote 112 on p. 159: Archiv der Kirchengemeinde Wannsee [formerly called Stolpe] by Pastor Hauschild, 1 Berlin 39, Schuchardtweg 5
  29. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, pp. 150-151
  30. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, p. 152
  31. ↑ a b Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, pp. 152-153; Caesar von der Ahé: Heinrich Wilhelm Maitey, the South Sea islander on the Pfaueninsel. In: Heimat und Ferne, No. 36/37 (September 9 and 16, 1930), no page counting
  32. ^ Church book Klein-Glienicke, based on a letter from Pastor Strauss of August 29, 1973, according to Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, p. 154, footnote 128, p. 160
  33. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, p. 154
  34. ^ Anneliese Moore: Harry Maitey: From Polynesia to Prussia . In: Hawaiian Journal of History 11 (1977): 125-161, p. 161
  35. ↑ Hanai in Hawaiian Dictionaries
  36. ↑ Wilfried M. Heidemann: The Sandwich Islander Maitey from the Pfaueninsel: The life story of a Hawaiian immigrant in Berlin and near Potsdam from 1824 to 1872. Announcements from the Society for the History of Berlin, 80th year, No. 2 (April 1984): Pp. 153-172, pp. 159-161.
  37. ^ David A. Chappell: Double Ghosts: Oceanian Voyagers on Euroamerican Ships . ME Sharpe, 1997, ISBN 9781563249990 , p. 130
  38. ↑ hula noho in Hawaiian Dictionaries
  39. ↑ Quoted from Wilfried M. Heidemann: Der Sandwich-Insulaner Maitey von der Pfaueninsel: The life story of a Hawaiian immigrant in Berlin and near Potsdam from 1824 to 1872. Communications from the Association for the History of Berlin, Volume 80, No. 2 (April 1984 ): 153-172, p. 156.
  40. ↑ The drawing is in the Akademie der Künste today : Harry of the Sandwich Islands, en face and in profile to the left. ; Signature: KS drawings Schadow 974; 23.2 x 33.6 cm; Catalog raisonné 1334; Caption: Harry Sandwich Islands. October 26th. 1824 .; Archive of the Academy of Arts ( https://archiv.adk.de/objekt/2787631 )
  41. ↑ Quoted from Wilfried M. Heidemann: Der Sandwich-Insulaner Maitey von der Pfaueninsel: The life story of a Hawaiian immigrant in Berlin and near Potsdam from 1824 to 1872. Communications from the Association for the History of Berlin, Volume 80, No. 2 (April 1984 ): 153-172, p. 162.
personal data
SURNAME Maitey, Harry
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Kaparena; Maitey, Henry; Maitey, Heinrich Wilhelm; Maiteÿ; Maitai, Harres
BRIEF DESCRIPTION First Hawaiian in Prussia and Germany
DATE OF BIRTH April 23, 1807
PLACE OF BIRTH Kingdom of Hawaii
DATE OF DEATH February 26, 1872
Place of death Klein-Glienicke