Word origins

• paFather, papa.
• neNot.
• akaUsed to introduce an explanation or clarification: in other words, i.e.
• mereJust, only; no more than, pure and simple, neither more nor better than might be expected.
• kaiFood.
• taraGoodbye.
• kaneA Polynesian or Maori man.
• tunaAny of several species of fish of the genus Thunnus in the family Scombridae.
• MaoriA member of the indigenous people of New Zealand.
• kiwiA flightless bird of the order Apterygiformes native to New Zealand.
• manaPower, prestige; specifically, a form of supernatural energy in Polynesian religion that inheres in things or people.
• tikiA carved talisman in humanoid form, common to the cultures of the Pacific Ocean.
• toroA traditional Japanese lantern.
• WaikatoA river in the Waikato region, North Island, New Zealand, emptying into the Tasman Sea; the longest in the country.
• OtagoA region in the South Island of New Zealand.
• huiA Māori social gathering or assembly.
• poiThe traditional staple food of Hawaii, made by baking and pounding the kalo (or taro) root, and reducing it to a thin paste, which is allowed to ferment.
• miroA large conifer of New Zealand, Pectinopitys ferruginea (syn. Prumnopitys ferruginea), with narrow leaves and reddish fruit; the wood of this tree.
• RotoruaA city, the capital of Rotorua Lakes district, Bay of Plenty, North Island, New Zealand, on the southern shores of Lake Rotorua.
• rataAny of various New Zealand plants of the genus Metrosideros.
• AotearoaThe North Island of New Zealand.
• TOIA male given name from Māori.
• TaranakiA region in western North Island, New Zealand.
• WanganuiA city and territorial authority in Manawatū-Whanganui region, on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand.
• noaNon-taboo; serving to replace a taboo name or term.
• toaA small painted artifact made by the Diyari people of Australia, believed to have been used as place markers or signposts.
• moaAny of several species of large, extinct, flightless birds of the family Dinornithidae that were native to New Zealand; until its extinction, one species was the largest bird in the world.
• taupoIn Samoan culture, a ceremonial virgin, the daughter of a village chief.
• hootA derisive cry or shout.
• ManawatuA territorial authority of Manawatū-Whanganui, North Island, New Zealand.
• keaNestor notabilis, a parrot of New Zealand.
• TaurangaA city in the northwest corner of the Bay of Plenty region, on the north coast of the North Island, New Zealand.
• motuA reef islet formed by broken coral and sand, surrounding an atoll.
• tuiA species of honeyeater, Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae, a bird which is endemic to New Zealand.
• taroColocasia esculenta, raised as a food primarily for its corm, which distantly resembles potato.
• tutuA ballet skirt made of layered stiff but light netting.
• makoA surname from Hungarian.
• kohaA Māori tradition of reciprocal giving of gifts.
• WhangareiA city in Northland, the northernmost in New Zealand.
• mahithe work required to complete a task
• WanakaA large lake in Otago, the fourth largest in New Zealand.
• akeThe groove made in a stone forming part of a killock.
• wetaAny of about 70 insect species in the families Anostostomatidae and Rhaphidophoridae, endemic to New Zealand, resembling katydids or crickets.
• maruA Japanese ship, especially a merchant ship.
• manukaLeptospermum scoparium, a shrub or small tree native to New Zealand and southeast Australia.
• KaikouraA town in Kaikoura district, Canterbury, on the east coast of the South Island, New Zealand.
• iwiAn extended group of Maori kin groups or families, sharing common ancestry; a tribe. (An iwi is smaller than a waka and larger than a hapu.)
• kinaThe national currency of Papua New Guinea, divided into 100 toea.
• WaitangiA locality in the Bay of Islands Northland region, North Island, New Zealand.
• pauaAny of several large, edible abalones of New Zealand, especially Haliotis iris, whose shell is used to make jewelry.
• wakaA kind of classical Japanese poem.
• moriaExcessive frivolity; an inability to be serious.
• auaAldrichetta forsteri, a mullet of the family Mugilidae.
• konoA traditional Maori woven basket.
• maraeThe courtyard of a Maori wharenui or meeting-house, seen as a cultural and spiritual focal point.
• karoAn ethnic group from Ethiopia.
• kawaMaori customs and protocol.
• roheA Māori tribal territory or region; (loosely), an area or region.
• whareA Maori house or other building.
• aueAlas, oh dear; dear me.
• kauriA conifer of the genus Agathis, found in Australasia and Melanesia, especially Agathis australis.
• mihiA greeting, in Maori culture.
• mauriLife force, according to Maori beliefs.
• wahineA woman, particularly a Polynesian or Maori one.
• kakaAny of four taxa of birds in the genus Nestor in the parrot family confined to New Zealand and adjacent islands.
• whanauAn extended family.
• hakuA three-ply braid incorporating additional materials, used in making lei.
• WhakataneA town in the Bay of Plenty region, North Island, New Zealand.
• wekaGallirallus australis, a flightless bird of New Zealand in the family Rallidae with brown plumage.
• wanangaA school in New Zealand that teaches native Maori knowledge, instituted by the Education Act of 1990.
• utuCompensation for a wrong suffered; reciprocal exchange or payment; (loosely), payback, revenge.
• titiAny New World monkey of the subfamily Callicebinae, native to South America, distinguished by their long soft fur.
• hakaA group dance of New Zealand's Māori people featuring rhythmic chanting, vigorous facial and arm movements, and foot stamping. Traditionally a war dance, today it is also performed to welcome guests, as a mark of respect at occasions such as commemorations and funerals, as a challenge to opposing teams at sports events, and for artistic purposes.
• kumaraThe sweet potato.
• kuriThe kitchen of a Zen monastery.
• tawaA frying pan or griddle.
• pipiThe edible saltwater clam Paphies australis, of the family Mesodesmatidae, endemic to New Zealand.
• koroA delusional syndrome found in Malay and southern Chinese populations, characterized by a belief that the subject's penis will retract into the abdomen and cause death.
• keteA traditional Maori woven basket.
• pakehaA non-Maori, especially a European New Zealander.
• mokoA traditional Maori tattoo (image made in the skin), traditionally done with chisels; also, such an image used as a personal sign or signature.
• hihiSynonym of stitchbird.
• WaihiA town in Hauraki district, Waikato, North Island, New Zealand, with a gold mining history.
• ParaparaumuA town in Kapiti Coast district, Wellington region, New Zealand.
• taongaIn Maori culture, any treasured thing, whether tangible or intangible.
• pukaA small, usually perforated, wave- and beach-polished shell fragment formed from the spire of a cone, found along beaches of Pacific islands, and used especially to make necklaces.
• rimuA large evergreen conifer native to New Zealand, Dacrydium cupressinum.
• kaupapaAmong the Māori people, a philosophy or set of principles.
• mohoThe North Island takahē, an extinct rail of New Zealand.
• koruA spiral shape that symbolizes growth, strength and peace, used in Māori art.
• hokiThe blue grenadier (Macruronus novaezelandiae), a merluccid hake.
• arohaLove and compassion.
• whakapapaGenealogy, as a fundamental principle of Māori culture that is critical in establishing one's identity.
• mokiA trumpeter fish, of the genus Latridopsis.
• WaikanaeA town in Kapiti Coast district, Wellington region, New Zealand.
• arikiA person having a hereditary chiefly or noble rank in Polynesia.
• totaraPodocarpus totara, a podocarp tree endemic to New Zealand.
• huiaA wattlebird (†Heteralocha acutirostris), endemic to New Zealand's North Island but extinct since the early twentieth century.
• ngaioAn evergreen tree of species Myoporum laetum, native to New Zealand.
• tuataraA reptile, Sphenodon punctatus, native to New Zealand, that resembles a lizard and is the only surviving specimen of the order Rhynchocephalia.