Glossary
The Māori words listed below are sometimes used untranslated in Te Ara’s English-language entries. They often have no precise English equivalents, or may have several meanings. Many are in general usage in New Zealand speech.
- ariki
- first-born male or female of a family of senior rank
- atua
- god; supernatural being or creature that reveals the spirit world; Christian God
- haka
- dance of challenge and welcome; chant accompanying a dance with actions
- hāngī
- earth oven
- hapū
- descent group, clan; modern meaning: section of a tribe, secondary tribe; literally: to have conceived
- hui
- meeting, assembly, coming together
- iwi
- set of people bound together by descent from a common ancestor or ancestors; literally: bone; modern meaning: tribe
- kāinga
- home, place of abode, lodgings, quarters
- karakia
- incantation, charm, spell, ancient rites, invocation; Christian prayers
- kaumātua
- elder, senior man or woman, community leader
- kawa
- tribal protocol followed on a marae; ceremonies of greeting and farewell
- kōwhaiwhai
- painted scroll ornamentation on traditional houses
- mana
- authority, power, psychic force, prestige
- Māoritanga
- Māori culture, including the identity, values, traditions, practices and beliefs of the Māori people
- marae
- open space or courtyard where people gather, generally in front of a main building or meeting house; forum of social life; modern meaning: the complex of buildings surrounding the courtyard and the courtyard itself
- mauri
- life principle; material object that is a symbol of the hidden principle protecting vitality
- moko
- tattoo on face or body
- pā
- fortified refuge or settlement
- Pākehā
- non-Māori, usually of British ethnic origin or background
- puhi
- young woman of rank reserved for arranged marriage; virgin
- rāhui
- prohibition; the setting aside of a place or thing for a specified time; permanent reservation of land for a specific purpose
- rangatira
- well-born, well-bred person; chief, male or female; leader of a tribe
- rangatiratanga
- domain or autonomous authority of the rangatira, sometimes sovereignty; chiefly qualities of a rangatira
- rūnanga
- tribal or public assembly, conference, council
- tangata
- human being, person
- tangata whenua
- literally: person or people of the land; people belonging to a tribal region; hosts as distinct from visitors
- tangihanga
- ceremony of mourning
- taniwha
- guardian, legendary monster
- tapu
- sacred; under religious restriction
- tohunga
- priest; expert in traditional lore; person skilled in specific activity; healer
- tukutuku
- ornamental lattice-work between upright slabs of the walls in a traditional house
- utu
- revenge, recompense, reward, price, payment; repayment in goods; retribution in battle
- waiata
- chant, song, poetry; to chant, to sing
- whakapapa
- genealogical table; to recite in proper order; literally: to place in layers
- whānau
- extended family group; to be born; modern meaning: family
- whare
- house, dwelling
- whare wānanga
- school of learning; modern meaning: university
- whenua
- literally: afterbirth; land, ground, earth, a country
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