kaitiaki

K5A1I1T1I1A1K5I1

noun

The Māori concept of guardianship of the natural environment.

OriginMāori kaitiaki →
Scrabble 16
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Meanings

nounkaitiaki (countable and uncountable, plural kaitiakis or kaitiaki)

plural kaitiakis

  1. New ZealanduncountableThe Māori concept of guardianship of the natural environment.
  2. New ZealandcountableIn Māori culture, a person serving as a guardian of the natural environment.

    Kaitiaki are rarely resourced to respond to the many requests for their time and expertise.

    2019, Jeannette Bastian, Andrew Flinn, Community Archives, Community Spaces: Heritage, Memory and Identity, page 72

Origin

  1. Māorikaitiaki
  2. Englishkaitiaki

Borrowed from Māori kaitiaki.

More words from Māori

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

kaitiaki. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kaitiaki

MLA

“kaitiaki.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kaitiaki. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “kaitiaki,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kaitiaki.

Source: kaitiaki on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.