kaumatua

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New Zealand/kʌʉˈmʌːtʉə/UK/kaʊˈmɑːtʊə/

noun

In Māori culture, an elder; a respected older person.

OriginMāori kaumātua →
Scrabble 14
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Meanings

nounkaumatua (plural kaumatuas or kaumatua)

plural kaumatuas

  1. New ZealandIn Māori culture, an elder; a respected older person.

    The kaumatua would have rubbed the finished ring against belly and nose to make that shine, for many months.

    1983, Keri Hulme, The Bone People, Penguin, published 1986, page 313

Origin

  1. Māorikaumātua“adult, elder”
  2. Englishkaumatua

Borrowed from Māori kaumātua (“adult, elder”).

More words from Māori

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

kaumatua. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kaumatua

MLA

“kaumatua.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kaumatua. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “kaumatua,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kaumatua.

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