Whom did the moai statues likely represent?

The iconic, gigantic stone moai statues found on Easter Island are believed to represent important personalities who were deified after their deaths. These monumental figures were typically erected on stone platforms known as ahu, where they stood in rows facing inland.1

It is important to distinguish these large stone monuments from the smaller wooden statues also referred to as "moai" in some contexts. Those smaller wooden figures, categorized as moai kavakava (male) and moai paepae (female), are thought to represent ancestors who continue to exist in the form of skeletons. While the large stone statues served as deified representations of significant individuals, the smaller wooden carvings were often used for fertility rites or harvest celebrations.2