Aitu

In Polynesian languages the word aitu refers to ghosts or spirits, often malevolent. The word is common to many languages of Western and Eastern Polynesia. In the mythology of Tonga, for example, aitu or eitu are lesser gods, many being patrons of specific villages and families. They often take the form of plants or animals, and are often more cruel than other gods. These trouble-making gods are regarded as having come from Sāmoa. The Tongan word tangi lauaitu (literally: cry like the aitu) means: to cry from grief, to lament.
See more at Wikipedia.org...

[Polynesian] Lesser Polynesian deities, such as the many tutelary gods of villages and families. The aitu appear in the shape of plants and animals and are thought to have more demonic than divine characteristics. They are known as atua on the Marquesas Islands (French Polynesia).