Māori words found in accompanying text
aroha - love, regard, sympathy, hospitality, affection, sorrow
āwhina – assist, help. The Sisters of the Rātana Church are known as Ngā Āwhina
hapū – part of a large tribe; pregnant
hui – come together, assemble, congregate; meet
kai – food
karakia – incantation, traditional chant usually of a sacred nature
kaumātua – persons of advanced years, elder
kaupapa – issue to be debated; basis or main ingredient (of a speech)
kawa – custom, protocol
kiri mate – the close relatives of a tūpāpaku (corpse)
koata – leader in the Rātana Church
kuia – elderly woman (sing: kuia)
Māoritanga – Māori culture, the essence of being Māori
manuhiri – guests, visitors
marae – meeting ground, forecourt of the meeting house
mihi – greeting; to greet, to acknowledge
mihi ki ngā mate – greeting to the dead (of former times)
mihi ki te huihuinga – greet to the assembled company
mihi ki te hunga ora – greeting to the living (present)
mihi ki te kiri mate, ki te whānau – greeting to the close kin, and extended family
mihi ki te tupapaku – greeting to the deceased
mihi ki te whakaminenga – greeting to the assembly
ngā mate – the dead
Pākehā – Anglo-Saxon, white New Zealanders
pepeha – a regional; saying identified with a particular tribe
poroporoaki – a farewell to the dead in formal speech
rangatira – one of noble birth
tangata whenua – people belonging to a particular place, local people
tāke – cause or purpose; see also kaupapa
tangihanga (tangi) – the mourning ceremony
tapu – sacred
tau – the term used to describe introduction section of a whaikōrero
tauparapara – a chant relating to whakapapa or mythology
tuakana – elder brother of a male; elder sister of a female; cousin of the same sex, but in an elder branch of the family (plural: tuākana)
waiata – loosely used to describe Māori song
waka – canoe, a tribal grouping
whānau – family; extended family
whaikōrero – formal Māori speech; to orate; oratory
whakaaraara – a loud cry which calls attention to the speaker
whakamutunga – ending, conclusion
whakataukī – proverb
whare tupuna – the house of the ancestors, the meeting house