Toa II Nukanoa

Toa II Nukanoa
Māori Kīngi of Ngāti Onekawa-Nukanoa Ariki Tauaroa of Ngāti Nukanoa
Reign	25 January – present
Coronation	25 January 2021
Predecessor	Tama III Nukanoa
Heir presumptive	Pania Nukanoa, Tapairu of Ngāti Onekawa-Nukanoa (eldest sister)
Born	10 June 1993 (age 27) Takutaiwhero Tūāwhiorangi Royal Hospital
House	Nukanoa
Father	Tama III Nukanoa
Mother	Sophia Rhomaios-Troadinos
Religion	Hāhiism

Toa II Nukanoa (Toa Īhāia Manu Riana Nukanoa; b. 10 June 1993) is the current reigning Māori Kīngi of Ngāti Onekawa-Nukanoa and Ariki Tauaroa of Ngāti Nukanoa; succeeding his father Tama III Nukanoa as the 11th Māori Kīngi of Ngāti Onekawa-Nukanoa on the 25 January 2021.

Toa was born in Takutaiwhero, Ngāti Onekawa-Nukanoa as the second of three children to his father and his wife Kiri Waimato-Nukanoa and the only son. He spent his primary and intermediate education at Takutaiwhero Roera o Wharekura before completing his secondary education at Pihi Iwi Wharekura. From their he entered the Royal Onekawa-Nukanoa Army and studied at the Royal Onekawa-Nukanoa Armed Forces tertiary insitituion Te Whare Wānanga Roera o Manuka where he graduated with a degree in history, political science and economics. Upon graduation he qualified for and served as an officer in the Royal Onekawa-Nukanoa Parachute Rifles until his royal duties pulled him from active service in 2019.

Toa's reign began on 25 January 2021 following the unexpected death of his father, before his acension to the throne he was vocal in his support for greater globalisation and liberalisation compared to his predecessors conservatism. He has also been an outspoken advocate for causes related to issues around health, particularly the health of children and young adults.

Personal life

Childhood

Toa Īhāia Manu Riana Nukanoa was born at 12:06am on 10 June 1993 in the royal delivery room within Tūāwhiorangi Royal Hospital during the reign of his father Tama III Nukanoa. Due to difficulties during his birth, he was delivered by caesarean section. The second child, he was only son born between the marriage of Tama III Nukanoa and Grand Princess Sophia of Mesogeia. His name and gender were only revealed publically the following day as is traditional for children of the Māori Kīngi. He was named Toa after his paternal great-grandfather Māori Kīngi Toa I Nukanoa and Manu after his fathers deceased childhood friend Manu Rewana.

His elder sister Pania Nukanoa, Tapairu of Ngāti Onekawa-Nukanoa has been born the previous year, and his younger sister Moana Nukanoa, Tapairu of Ngāti Onekawa-Nukanoa would be born the following year. It was noted early on that Toa was particularly gregarious even for a child; he was also known to be particularly fond of food, a vice his mother had a tendency to indulge. At the age of 11 he reportedly weight nearly 55 kilograms and was morbidly obese for a child of his age and build. His father quickly placed Toa on a strict diet and exercise regime where he discovered his love of sport, particularly rugby union.

He started to participate in official royal duties at 12 in 2005; where he visited Pulau Keramat and Zanzali with his parents and older sister in an official diplomatic tour around the Karaihe Sea.

Education

Whilst Toa had tutors early on; his official education didn't begin until he was 5. Like is traditional for the Nukanoa Royal Family he attended publicly funded schools. He completed his primary and intermediate education at Takutaiwhero Roera o Wharekura before attending Pihi Iwi Wharekura for his secondary education. These choice of schools was particularly noteworthy as they were not schools which had seen previous members of the royal family attend. This was reportedly a deliberate choice by his parents to maximize his exposure to regular Onekawans. At Pihi Iwi Wharekura he showed a weakness for traditionally STEM subjects, having failed Chemistry and only receiving a passing "Achieved" grade for Maths during his time there whereas his grades for History, Economics and Legal Studies were regularly "Meritous" or "Excellent". During his secondary schooling he also received private tutoring on politics.

By secondary school his health had significantly improved and he proved himself to be a superb athlete with a natural talent for sports and love for fitness. He played at the highest level of secondary school rugby union, and was selected as a starter for the U16, U17 and U18 national and Iwi rugby teams playing as an Halfback, predominately as a fly-half.

Military service

After public schooling he enrolled in Te Whare Wānanga Roera o Manuka. Whilst their he studied History, International Relations and Economics. Whilst their he continued his participation in rugby, where he was selected for the U20 national team and as well as the U20 army team. After completing his tertiary education and graduating as valedictorian for his class he underwent parachutist officer training before receiving his commission as [Second Lieutenant] in the Royal Onekawa-Nukanoa Parachute Rifles.

Reign

Liberalisation

Toa's reign has differed significantly from his fathers, with a particular focus on liberalising many of the more conservative aspects of Ngāti Onekawa-Nukanoa government and culture. Before his ascension he had been vocal in his support for social liberialisation, and his first significant step towards this aim was changing the laws of succession for the Māori Kīngi, going from cognatic primogeniture to simply primogeniture. This equality between the sexes in regards to the throne was seen as a major step forward for many progressives in the government. It was reported that he received significant resistance to this change from his uncle Rawiri Nukanoa, Wheao of Ngāti Onekawa-Nukanoa and the more traditional elements within the government and royal family.