Etymology

whakapapa

W4H4A1K5A1P3A1P3A1

Today it means: Genealogy, as a fundamental principle of Māori culture that is critical in establishing one's identity. Full definition →

Māori whakapapa ← Proto-Polynesian *papa ← Proto-Oceanic *baban
Ask AI about its historyChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

The story

  1. Proto-Polynesian*faka
  2. Māoriwhaka-
  3. Proto-Malayo-Polynesian*papan
  4. Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian*papan
  5. Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian*papan
  6. Proto-Oceanic*baban
  7. Proto-Polynesian*papa
  8. Māoripapa
  9. Māoriwhakapapa
  10. English todaywhakapapa

Borrowed from Māori whakapapa.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.