Weblinks
Basic Words
BELOW ARE JUST A FEW VERY BASIC MAORI WORDS - ADDITIONS/SUGGESTIONS ARE ALWAYS WELCOME.
NB. Different Iwi have different ways of spelling, pronunciation and regional dialect, therefore there are usually more than one meaning and spelling variants to most words.
To Search this Page : Ctrl+F
| MAORI | PAKEHA |
GENEALOGY
| WHAKAPAPA | GENEALOGY |
| WHANAU | FAMILY |
| IWI | TRIBE/PEOPLE |
| MOKAPUNA | GRANDCHILD |
| AITANGA | DESCENDANT |
| MATUA WAHINE | MOTHER |
| MATUA TANE | FATHER |
| TAMA TANE | SON |
| TAMAHINE | DAUGHTER |
| TIPUNA TANE | GRANDFATHER |
| TIPUNA WAHINE | GRANDMOTHER |
| WHAEA | AUNT |
| MATUA | UNCLE |
| IRAMUTU | NIECE |
| TAMA | NEPHEW |
| KAIHANA | COUSIN |
| WHANAUTANGA | BIRTH |
| HEMONGA | DEATH |
| MARENA | MARRIAGE |
| WEHENGA MARENA | DIVORCE |
NZ NATIONAL ANTHEM - GOD DEFEND NZ
| E Ihoa Atua | God of nations at thy feet |
| O nga Iwi Matoura | In the bonds of love we meet |
| Ata whaka rongona; | Hear our voices we entreat |
| Me aroha noa. | God defend our free land. |
| Kia hua ko te pai; | Guard Pacific's triple star |
| Kia tau to atawhai; | From the shafts of strife and war |
| Manaakitia mai | Make her praises heard afar |
| Aotearoa | God defend New Zealand. |
HAKA
| Ka mate! Ka mate! Ka ora! Ka ora! | I die! I die! I live! I live! |
| Tenei te tangata puhuru huru | This is the hairy man |
| Nana nei i tiki mai | who fetched the Sun |
| Whakawhiti te ra | And caused it to shine again |
| A upa... ne! ka upa... ne! | One upward step! Another upward step! |
| A upane kaupane whiti ra! | An upward step, another... the Sun shines!!! |
FIRST NAMES
| ATAMA | ADAM |
| ARAPETA | ALBERT |
| ARAPETI | ALFRED |
| ARIHI | ALICE |
| ANARU | ANDREW |
| ANI | ANNE |
| ATONI | ANTHONY |
| BENIAMINE | BENJAMIN |
| PERENARA | BERNARD |
| PURUHI | BRUCE |
| KARORAINA | CAROLINE |
| KATARINA | CATHERINE |
| HAARE | CHARLES |
| HARATA | CHARLOTTE |
| KIRITOPA | CHRISTOPHER |
| RANIERA | DANIEL |
| REWI | DAVE |
| RAWIRI | DAVID |
| RIANA | DIANA |
| TARATI | DOROTHY |
| ERUERA | EDWARD |
| IRIHAPETI | ELIZABETH |
| EHETARA | ESTHER |
| HAARE | HARRY |
| HENARE | HENRY |
| IHAPERA | ISABEL |
| HAKI | JACK |
| HAKOPA | JACOB |
| HEMI | JAMES |
| HENI | JANE |
| HONE | JOHN |
| HOHEPA | JOSEPH |
| HOHUA | JOSHUA |
| HUTITA | JUDITH |
| RUIHA | LOUISE |
| RUIHI | LUCY |
| MAKERE | MARGARET |
| MAAKA | MARK |
| MATENE | MARTIN |
| MAATA | MARTHA |
| MERE | MARY |
| MIKAERE | MICHAEL |
| NIKORA | NICHOLAS |
| PAORA | PAUL |
| PITA | PETER |
| PIRIPI | PHILLIP |
| KUINI | QUEENIE |
| RAHERA | RACHEL |
| RAU | RALPH |
| RIPEKA | REBECCA |
| RIHARI | RICHARD |
| RAPATA or ROPATA | ROBERT |
| RUTA | RUTH |
| HAMUERA | SAMUEL |
| HERA | SARAH |
| HEREWINI | SELWYN |
| TIPENE | STEVEN |
| HUHANA | SUSAN/SUSANNAH |
| TAMATI | THOMAS |
| TOMOTI | TIMOTHY |
| WIKITORIA | VICTORIA |
| WAATA | WALTER |
| WIREMU | WILLIAM |
| METE | SMITH |
NB. Before 1900 records usually give no first names for Maori people unless the Maori person
concerned lived with or was married to a Pakeha, or had a Pakeha parent.
BASIC WORDS
| AOTEAROA | LAND OF THE LONG WHITE CLOUD [NEW ZEALAND] |
| KIA ORA | HELLO |
| PAKEHA | EUROPEAN NEW ZEALANDER |
| KIWI | ALL NEW ZEALANDERS [SLANG] |
| MAORI | NATIVE PEOPLE |
| WHARE | HOUSE |
| MARAE | MEETING GROUND |
| NGERU | CAT |
| KURI | DOG |
| PATU | CLUB |
| KAI | FOOD |
| MOKO | TATTOO |
| TIKI | ORNAMENT |
| PIUPIU | FLAX SKIRT |
| TAIAHA | SPEAR |
| WHAKAIRO | CARVING |
| PAUA | ABALONE |
| WHARENUI | MEETING HOUSE |
| POUNAMU | GREENSTONE |
| HONGI | PRESS NOSES |
| TAPU | SACRED/FORBIDDEN |
NUMBERS
| TAHI | ONE |
| RUA | TWO |
| TORU | THREE |
| WHA | FOUR |
| RIMA | FIVE |
| ONO | SIX |
| WHITU | SEVEN |
| WARU | EIGHT |
| IWA | NINE |
| TEKAU | TEN |
| TEKAU MA TAHI | ELEVEN |
| TEKAU MA RUA | TWELVE |
| TEKAU MA TORU | THIRTEEN |
| TEKAU MA WHA | FOURTEEN |
| TEKAU MA RIMA | FIFTEEN |
| TEKAU MA ONO | SIXTEEN |
| TEKAU MA WHITU | SEVENTEEN |
| TEKAU MA WARU | EIGHTEEN |
| TEKAU MA IWA | NINETEEN |
| RUA TEKAU | TWENTY |
| TORU TEKAU | THIRTY |
| WHA TEKAU | FORTY |
| RIMA TEKAU | FIFTY |
| ONO TEKAU | SIXTY |
| WHITU TEKAU | SEVENTY |
| WARU TEKAU | EIGHTY |
| IWA TEKAU | NINETY |
| KOTAHI RAU | ONE HUNDRED |
MONTHS
| KOHI-TATEA / HANUERE | JANUARY |
| HUI-TANGURU / PEPUERE | FEBRUARY |
| POUTU-TE-RANGI / MAEHE | MARCH |
| PAENGA-WHAWHA / APERIRA | APRIL |
| HARATUA / MEI | MAY |
| PIPIRI / HUNE | JUNE |
| HONGONGOI / HURAE | JULY |
| HERE-TURI-KOKA / AKUHATA | AUGUST |
| MAHURU / HEPETEMA | SEPTEMBER |
| WHIRINGA-A-NUKU / OKETOPA | OCTOBER |
| WHIRINGA-ARANGI / NOEMA | NOVEMBER |
| HAKIHEA / TIHEMA | DECEMBER |
Many thanks to Carol Whyte for the Months of Sept, Oct, Nov & Dec
--------------------------- G E N E o N Z ---------------------------
NZ & Maori Genealogy
Carol Whyte, Auckland, New Zealand
http://www.geocities.com/wlorac
--------------------------- G E N E o N Z ---------------------------
SEASONS
| KOANGA | SPRING |
| RAUMATI | SUMMER |
| NGAHURU | AUTUMN |
| HOTOKE | WINTER |
COLOURS
| WHERO | RED |
| KIKORANGI | BLUE |
| KAKARIKI | GREEN |
| KOWHAI | YELLOW |
| MA | WHITE |
| PANGO | BLACK |
| PARAKARAKARA | ORANGE |
| MAWHERO | PINK |
| PARAONE | BROWN |
Who's Online
We have 522 guests online
Kia mau koe ki nga kupu o ou tupuna (hold fast to the words of your ancestors)
NZSG YouTube Clip
Whakapapa Research Guide
WHAKAPAPA: An introduction to researching Māori and Pākehā-Māori families, their history, heritage, and culture
