Word origins

• hapuA subtribe of an iwi or Maori tribe; the basic political unit within Māori society; a subtribe or extended family.
• tikangaA custom, value or principle, especially of the Maori people.
• OpotikiA town and local government district in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand.
• mataiA Samoan chief.
• karakaAn evergreen tree, Corynocarpus laevigatus, bearing fruits with a kernel that can be eaten after extensive roasting and washing.
• mukaPrepared fibre of harakeke, used in traditional Maori weaving.
• TakakaA small town in Golden Bay, Tasman district, South Island, New Zealand.
• tainuiNew Zealand hazel.
• pongaA medium-sized tree fern endemic to New Zealand, of species Alsophila tricolor (syns .Alsophila dealbata, Cyathea dealbata et al.).
• namuA sandfly of the genus Austrosimulium.
• runangaA traditional Māori assembly or tribal council.
• AoteaGreat Barrier Island
• tangiA Maori dirge, or song for the dead.
• ruruThe morepork.
• waiataA Māori folk song.
• pohutukawaA coastal evergreen tree, Metrosideros excelsa, native to New Zealand and producing a brilliant display of red flowers with prominent stamens around Christmastime.
• hangiA traditional Māori pit oven, in which (suitably wrapped) raw food is lain on a base of heated stones.
• kakapoA large flightless parrot, Strigops habroptilus, with greenish plumage, that is nocturnal and native to New Zealand.
• huhuA beetle, Prionoplus reticularis, endemic to New Zealand.
• koreroAmong the Māori people, a meeting to discuss something; a conference.
• kowhaiAny of several small woody legume trees in the genus Sophora native to New Zealand that have yellow flowers. The national flower of New Zealand.
• OmaramaA town in Waitaki district, Canterbury, South Island, New Zealand.
• umuAn earth oven used in New Zealand, Samoa, and other Pacific islands, consisting of a hole dug in the ground and lined with heated stones.
• kawakawaA false albacore, a fish of species Euthynnus affinis.
• MahiaA peninsula in Hawke's Bay, North Island, New Zealand; in full, Mahia Peninsula.
• kawauThe great cormorant.
• manaiaA bird-headed mythological creature and symbol of protection in Māori mythology.
• NgaruawahiaA town in the Waikato, New Zealand.
• PaekakarikiA town in Kapiti Coast district, Wellington region, New Zealand.
• kahuswamp harrier (Circus approximans)
• taniwhaA spirit or monster in Maori mythology, especially one that dwells in the water.
• hioiSynonym of New Zealand mint.
• pounamuJade, nephrite.
• mapauAny of several trees of New Zealand, especially in the genus Myrsine.
• WhenuapaiA suburb of Auckland, New Zealand, and an RNZAF base.
• MatarikiThe season, in late May or early June, when the Pleiades star cluster first rises, treated as the beginning of the new year by the Maori.
• nikauA New Zealand palm, Rhopalostylis sapida, with edible pith and leaves used for building and thatching.
• pukuA medium-sized antelope found in Central Africa (Kobus vardonii).
• patuA Maori club or pounder.
• paroreluderick (Girella tricuspidata)
• HawaikiThe original home of the Māori, before they travelled across the sea to New Zealand. It also features as the underworld in many Māori stories.
• katipoA venomous spider, Latrodectus katipo, endemic to New Zealand.
• ahuruAuchenoceros punctatus, a morid cod found around New Zealand.
• ahuruhuruThe goatfish.
• akapukaSynonym of puka (“Griselinia lucida”).
• akateaAny of various species of white-flowering climbing vine from New Zealand, in the genus Metrosideros.
• akeakeA tree of species Dodonaea viscosa; aalii.
• akepiroA small tree of New Zealand (Olearia furfuracea).
• akirahoOlearia paniculata, a flowering plant.
• amokuraSynonym of red-tailed tropicbird.
• araaratrevally, a kind of fish
• aruheThe rhizomes of Pteridium esculentum, used for food by the Maori.
• atuaA spiritual being in Polynesian culture; a god or demon.
• awetoA parasitic fungus of the genus Ophiocordyceps.
• awhetoSynonym of caterpillar fungus (“Ophiocordyceps sinensis”).
• biddi-biddiThe burr of the piri-piri plant.
• bidgee-widgeeA small prostrate, rosaceous, perennial plant, Acaena novae-zelandiae, native to New Zealand, Australia and New Guinea; now an invasive weed in Britain and western Europe.
• cockabullyAny of various small, blunt-nosed freshwater fishes, especially gobies of the genus Gobiomorphus.
• e hoaMate, friend.
• hakariAn elaborate feast in Maori culture.
• hangehangeGeniostoma ligustrifolium, a loganiaceous plant of New Zealand.
• hapuaa river-mouth lagoon, chiefly in New Zealand, formed at the interface between a braided river and a mixed sand and gravel beach deposited and extended by longshore drift.
• hapukuA large and valuable food fish, Polyprion oxygeneios, in the family Serranidae of New Zealand.
• harakekeNew Zealand flax, Phormium tenax
• Hei HeiA suburb of Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand.
• hei-tikiAn ornamental pendant (typically made of pounamu or greenstone) among the Māori, worn around the neck, representing a human figure traditionally connected with Tiki, the first human in Maori mythology.
• heketaraOlearia rani, a small forest tree of New Zealand.
• hikoiA protest march, typically involving a long journey.
• hinauElaeocarpus dentatus, a tree of New Zealand.
• Hine-nui-te-poA goddess of night and death who rules the underworld in Māori mythology.
• HiruharamaA settlement in Gisborne District, New Zealand.
• hohaangry, annoyed.
• hoihoThe yellow-eyed penguin, Megadyptes antipodes.
• hokaSynonym of red codling.
• hongiThe Maori greeting of touching noses.
• horoekaThe lancewood tree, Pseudopanax crassifolius.
• horokakaThe plant Disphyma australe.
• horopitoEither of two plant species in the Pseudowintera genus.
• houhereAny of various New Zealand plants of the genus Hoheria.
• huhu beetleA longhorn beetle, Prionoplus reticularis, of the Cerambycidae family; the largest endemic beetle found in New Zealand.
• hupiroThe stinkwood, Coprosma foetidissima.
• inangaA fish, the jollytail (Galaxias maculatus).
• kahawaiAn edible marine fish, Arripis trutta, found around the southeastern coast of Australia and New Zealand, having a dark bluish-green body with indistinct rows of spots forming narrow irregular bands on the upper sides.
• kahikaSynonym of kahikatea.
• kahikateaDacrycarpus dacrydioides, a coniferous tree endemic to New Zealand.
• kahikatoaLeptospermum scoparium, the manuka.
• kaikawakaLibocedrus bidwillii, the New Zealand cedar, an evergreen coniferous tree.
• kaikomakoPennantia baylisiana, a rare tree of New Zealand.
• kaingaA Maori village.
• kaitiakiThe Māori concept of guardianship of the natural environment.
• kaitiakitangastewardship or guardianship of the natural environment.
• kaiwhiriaParsonsia capsularis, a climbing plant endemic to New Zealand.
• kakahaThe bush lily, Astelia fragrans.
• kakahiEchyridella menziesii, the New Zealand freshwater mussel.
• kakarikiA parakeet of New Zealand, genus Cyanoramphus.
• kamokamoA variety of squash, Cucurbita pepo.
• kanaeA grey mullet.
• kanukaKunzea ericoides, the white tea tree of Australia and New Zealand, which can grow at high altitudes and in close proximity to geothermal features such as fumaroles.
• kapa hakaMāori performing arts, including song, dance, and synchronized movement
• ka paigood, fine