He Ika Haehae Kupenga
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​He Rārangi Kupu | A Glossary

Many Māori words and sayings have multiple meanings, which vary according to context. The meanings listed here relate specifically to how the words and sayings are used on He Ika Haehae Kupenga.

​Papakupu | Dictionaries

Māori Dictionary
https://maoridictionary.co.nz/
English Dictionary
https://www.dictionary.com/

Kupu | Words

​āe
yes

​ahi kā
​home fires; people who keep the home fires burning

​Ahu Whenua
​Māori common land trust/s

​āhua
​form/s; appearance/s

ao
world/s

Aotahi
​School of Māori and Indigenous Studies at the University of Canterbury

Aotearoa
New Zealand

​arero
​tongue

aroha
​love; concern; sympathy; grief

atua
​god/s, deity/deities, supernatural being/s, ancestor/s

​auē
​an expression of astonishment or anguish

aute
paper mulberry, Broussonetia papyrifera

awa
​river/s; stream/s; creek/s

​Awarua
​a river in central South Island of New Zealand

haehae
to tear

haka
​traditional Māori dance/s

​hākari
​feast/s

​hāngī
​a traditional means of cooking food using heated stones

​hapū
​sub-tribe/s

harakeke
flax, Phormium tenax

​Haumia-tiketike
​god of uncultivated food

hauora
​health; well-being

​Hawaiki
​ancient homeland of Māori people

​heke
​down/s; negative/s

​hinengaro
​mind/s; intellect/s

​Hinepūkohurangi
the ​maiden of the mist, an ancestor of Ngāi Tūhoe

​hoa ako
​fellow learner/s

​hoa haere
​companion/s

hua
produce; product/s; fruit/s; result/s; outcome/s; benefit/s

Hua Parakore
​a kaupapa Māori system and framework for growing food

​hue
gourd plant/s, Lagenaria siceraria

​hui
​gathering/s; meeting/s

​Huia
an area in the Auckland region of the North Island of New Zealand

ihu hūpē
​inexperienced person/people

​Ihumātao
​an area in the Auckland region of the North Island of New Zealand

​ika
​fish

​iwi
​tribe/s; people/s

​Kāhui Ariki
​the Māori royal family

​Kahungunu
a Māori tribe (also Ngāti Kahungunu)

​kai
food/s

kaikaranga
​woman/women who call/s people on the marae

​kaiwhaikōrero
​formal speech-maker/s

​Kai Oranga
​a Māori food sovereignty course offered by Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi

Kāi Tahu
a Māori tribe (also Ngāi Tahu)

​Kāi Tahutaka
​Kāi Tahu culture/s; 'Kāi Tahu-ness'

​kaiako
​teacher/s

​kaiāwhina
​asssitant/s; support worker/s

​kaimanga
​vegetarian/s; vegan/s; consumer/s of greens; eater/s of leafy vegetables

​kaimangatanga
​a Māori plant-based food ethic, articulated by Kirsty Dunn

​kaimoana
​seafood

​kaitiaki
​guardian/s; steward/s

​kaitiakitanga
guardianship; stewardship; custodianship

​kaitipu
​eater/s of vegetables; vegan/s

​Kaitoke
​an area in the lower North Island of New Zealand

​kaiwero
​challenger/s

kaiwhakatipu
​someone/people who help/s things grow; editor/s

​kākā
bird/s of the species Nestor meridionalis

​kamokamo
fruit of the Cucurbita genus

​kanohi kitea
​seen face; someone/people who is/are known in a community

​kapa haka
​Māori performance group/s; Māori performing arts

Kapa Kōrero
​a Māori language conversation group based in Auckland

karo
tree/s of the species Pittosporum crassifolium and Pittosporum ralphii

​Kāti Huirapa ki Arowhenua
​a sub-tribe of Kāi Tahu

kau
cow/s, Bos taurus

​kaumātua
​elder/s

​kaupapa
​issue/s; initiative/s

​kaupapa Māori
​Māori approach/es

kauri
tree/s of the species Agathis australis

kawa
​protocol/s

kekeno
fur seal/s, Arctocephalus forsteri

​kererū
bird/s of the species Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae

​kīanga
phrase/s

kina
sea urchin, Evechinus chloroticus

koha
​gift/s; contribution/s; offering/s

​kōhanga reo
​Māori-medium preschool/s

​kōiwi
​human bone/s

kōkako
​bird/s of the species Callaeas cinerea

​kōrero
​story/stories; narrative/s; account/s; discussion/s; conversation/s; speech/es

​Kotahi Mano Kāika
​a tribal organisation reinvigorating te reo Māori within Kāi Tahu

​kotahitanga
​togetherness; unity

kōwhai
tree/s of the species Sophora microphylla, Sophora tetraptera and Sophora prostrata

kōwhaiwhai
​scroll ornamentation

​kūmara
sweet potato/es, Ipomoea batatas

kupenga
​net/s

kupu
word/s

kupu whakarite
metaphor/s

kura
school/s; Māori-medium primary school/s (also kura kaupapa Māori)

​kura kaupapa
Māori-medium primary school/s  (also kura kaupapa Māori)

​kura kaupapa Māori
Māori-medium primary school/s  (also kura, kura kaupapa)

​mahi
​work; practice/s

​mahinga kai
​food cultivation/s; food-gathering place/s

​Mahuru Māori
a Māori language initiative promoted by Te Wānanga o Aotearoa, which challenges people to speak te reo Māori for all, or part, of September

​māmā
mother/s; mum/s

​mana
​authority; status; influence; power; standing

​mana motuhake
​autonomy; sovereignty; self-determination; unique identity

mana whenua
​tribal authority over land; those with tribal authority over land

​manaaki
​to care for; to look after; to show hospitality to

​manaakitanga
​care; kindness; hospitality

​Manawatū
​an area in the lower North Island of New Zealand

​Māngere
an area in the Auckland region of the North Island of New Zealand

manu
bird/s

manuhiri
guest/s; visitor/s (also manuwhiri)

​manuwhiri
guest/s; visitor/s (also manuhiri)

Māori
​indigenous to New Zealand; indigenous New Zealander/s; of New Zealand’s indigenous culture

​māori
​normal; natural

​Māoritanga
​Māori culture/s; 'Māoriness'

māra
​garden/s; community garden/s

​māra kai
​garden/s; community garden/s

​Māra Kai
a programme launched by the New Zealand government in 2009 to promote community gardens on marae and Māori community projects

​marae
​courtyard in front of a meeting house; meeting grounds

​maramataka
​the Māori lunar calendar

​māramatanga
​understanding; enlightenment; insight

mātauranga
​knowledge/s

​mau rākau
​Māori martial arts

mauri
life force/s; essence/s; unique quality/qualities

miraka
milk

​moana
​sea/s, ocean/s, lake/s

​Moeraki
​an area in the south of the South Island of New Zealand

​moko
grandchild/ren; child/ren; descendent/s (also mokopuna)

​moko
traditional tattoo/s; traditional tattooing (also tā moko)

​mokopuna
grandchild/ren; child/ren; descendent/s (also moko)

​motu
​island/s; country/countries

Murihiku
an area encompassing the south of the South Island of New Zealand

naki
cat/s, Felis catus

​nē
eh

​ngahere
​forest/s

Ngāi Tahu
a Māori tribe (also Kāi Tahu)

Ngāi Tūhoe
a Māori tribe (also Tūhoe)

​ngākau
​heart; mind; soul

​ngākau māhaki
​humility

​ngākau whakaiti
​someone/people who is/are humble

​Ngāpuhi
​a Māori tribe

​Ngāti Apakura
​a Māori tribe

​Ngāti Hine
​a Māori tribe

Ngāti Kahu
​a Māori tribe

Ngāti Kahungunu
a Māori tribe (also Kahungunu)

​Ngāti Kuri
​a Māori tribe

Ngāti Mahuta
​a Māori tribe

​Ngāti Maniapoto
a Māori tribe

Ngāti Porou
​a Māori tribe

​Ngāti Raukawa ki te Tonga
​a Māori tribe

​Ngāti Tahu-Ngāti Whāoa
​a confederation of Māori sub-tribes

​Ngāti Tūwharetoa
​a Māori tribe

​Ngāti Whakaue
​​a Māori tribe

​Ngā Wai o Horotiu Marae
​the marae at Auckland University of Technology (AUT)

​noho marae
​marae stay/s

​Opihi
​a river in central South Island of New Zealand

​Oranga Tamariki
​the New Zealand government's Ministry for Children

​Ōrongorongo
​a valley in the lower North Island of New Zealand

​Ōtautahi
​Christchurch, a city in the South Island of New Zealand

​Ōtepoti
​Dunedin, a city in the South Island of New Zealand

​Pākehā
​New Zealand European; of New Zealand’s settler culture

​Pākuratahi
​a river in the lower North Island of New Zealand

​paepae
​orators' bench/es

​Papa
Earth; the Earth mother (also Papatūānuku)

​pāpā
​father/s; dad/s

papa kāinga
​village/s; traditional home/s

​papakupu
​dictionary/dictionaries

Papatūānuku
Earth; the Earth mother (also Papa)

​Papawhakaritorito
an organic family farm in Kaitoke, run by Jessica Hutchings and Jo Smith

parakore
​pure; uncontaminated; organic

​pāua
​molluscs of various species

piki
​up/s; positive/s

​pikitia
​image; photograph

​pikopiko
​edible fern shoots

​pirihimana whēkana
​vegan police

pīwaiwaka
​fantail/s, Rhipidura fuliginosa

pouaka
​box/es

​poukai
​gathering/s to celebrate and support the Māori king movement

pūkeko
bird/s of the species Porphyrio porphyrio

​puku
​stomach/s

puna
​spring/s; well/s

puna wai
​spring/s; well/s; pool/s

pūriri
tree/s of the species Vitex lucens

​pūtea
​money; fund/s

​rāhui
​ritual prohibition/s

​Rakiura
​Stewart Island

rangatiratanga
​sovereignty; self-determination; leadership

Rangi
the sky father (also Rangi-nui)

​Rangi-nui
the sky father (also Rangi)

​Rangitāne
​a Māori tribe

​rārangi kupu
​glossary/glossaries

reo
language/s

ringatoi
​artist/s

​ringawera
​kitchen worker/s

​ritenga kai
​dietary requirements

rohe
​region/s; territory/territories; boundary/boundaries

Rongo​
god of cultivated food and peace (also Rongo-mā-Tāne)

​rongoā
​remedy/remedies; medicine/s; treatment/s

Rongo-mā-Tāne
god of cultivated food and peace (also Rongo)

Rongowhakaata
a Māori tribe

​rumaki
​immersion

​rūnanga
​tribal council/s

​tā moko
traditional tattoo/s; traditional tattooing (also moko)

taiao
​natural environment

​takahē
bird/s of the species Porphyrio hochstetteri

takatāpui
lesbian; gay; queer

​tamaiti
​child; boy; son

Tāmaki-makau-rau
Auckland, a city in the North Island of New Zealand

​tamariki
​children

​Tāne
god of the forests and birds (also Tāne-mahuta)

​tāne
​man; men; male partner; husband; fiancé

​Tāne-mahuta
god of the forests and birds (also Tāne)

​Tangaroa
​god of the sea and fish

​tāngata
​people

​tangata whenua
​indigenous people/s; people of the land

taonga
​treasure/s; valued possession/s; anything that is cherished

​taonga kai
​important food/s

tapa
paper mulberry, Broussonetia papyrifera

tāpapa
seed bed/s for kūmara; micro-climate/s created to grow food

​tapu
​sacred; restricted

​taro
an edible plant, Colocasia esculenta

tauiwi
​non-Māori person/people

​tautoko
​support; to support

​te ao Māori
​the Māori world

te ao tūroa
​the natural world

​Te Ara Poutama
the Faculty of Māori and Indigenous Development at Auckland University of Technology (AUT)

​Te Āti Awa
a Māori tribe (also Te Ātiawa)

Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi
​a Māori tribe

​Te Ātiawa
a Māori tribe (also Te Āti Awa)

​Te Aupōuri
​a Māori tribe

​Te Ira Tāngata
​ActionStation's vision statement

​Te Kura Reo Kāi Tahu
​a language-learning gathering for Kāi Tahu

​te Mātāpuna Aroha
​the Politics of Love, a vision of politics which centres love, articulated by Max Harris, Philip McKibbin, and others

​Te Panekireitanga o te Reo
​a Māori language course formerly offered by Te Wānanga o Aotearoa

​Te Pīnakitanga ki te Reo Kairangi
​a Māori language course offered by Te Wānanga o Aotearoa

​Te Puia
​the New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute

​Te Rarawa
​a Māori tribe

te reo
​the [Māori] language

​te reo Ingarangi
​the English language (also te reo Pākehā)

te reo Māori
the Māori language

​te reo Pākehā 
the English language (also te reo Ingarangi)

​Te Tai Tokerau
​Northland, an area in the north of the North Island of New Zealand

te taiao
​the natural environment

​Te Takapū o Rotowhio
​the National Bone/Stone Carving School

​Te Umu Kaha
​a river in central South Island of New Zealand

​Te Waka Kai Ora
​the National Māori Organics Authority of Aotearoa

​Te Wānanga o Aotearoa
​a Māori tertiary education provider

Te Wānanga o Raukawa​
​a Māori tertiary education provider

​Te Whakatōhea
​a Māori tribe

​Te Whanganui-a-Tara
​Wellington, a city in the North Island of New Zealand

​Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi
​a Māori tertiary education provider

​tiakitanga
​guardianship; stewardship

tika
​right; correct; just

​tikanga
protocol/s; custom/s; practice/s; convention/s

​tinana
​body/bodies

​tino rangatiratanga
​sovereignty; self-determination; leadership

​tīpuna
ancestors (also tūpuna)

​tītī
muttonbird/s, Puffinus griseus

​Titirangi
an area in the Auckland region of the North Island of New Zealand

tohorā
whale/s, of various species

​tohu
​sign/s

​tohunga reo
​[Māori] language expert/s

​toi
​art/s

Tūhoe
a Māori tribe (also Ngāi Tūhoe)

​tūī
bird/s of the species Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae

​tūkino
​harm; destruction; cruelty; abuse

tuna
eel/s, including the species Anguilla dieffenbachii and Anguilla australis

​Tupuānuku
​a vegan market stall and catering company based in Whakātane, set up by Raniera Rewiri

tūpuna
ancestors (also tīpuna)

​tūtae
​excrement; shit

uwhi
yam, Dioscorea alata

​wahine
​woman; female partner; wife; fiancée

wāhine
women

wai
​water

​waiata
​song/s; singing

​wai māori
fresh water

​Waihī
​a town in the Hauraki region of the North Island of New Zealand

Waikato
a Māori tribe (also Waikato-Tainui); an area in the central North Island of New Zealand

​Waikato-Tainui
a Māori tribe (also Waikato)

​Waimana
​an area in the Bay of Plenty region of the North Island of New Zealand

wairua
​spirit/s

​Waitākere
an area in the Auckland region of the North Island of New Zealand

waka
​canoe/s; vessel/s; vehicle/s

​wānanga
​discussion/s; educational forum/s

​whaikōrero
​formal speech; formal speech-making

​whāinga
​aim/s; goal/s

​whakaaro
​idea/s; thought/s; thinking

​whakamā
​shy; embarrassed; ashamed; shyness; embarrassment; shame

​whakamāori
​to make Māori; to make normal

whakapapa
ancestry; to relate to through ancestry

​Whakatāne
​a town in the Bay of Plenty region of the North Island of New Zealand

whakatauākī
​traditional saying/s; proverb/s

whakataukī
​traditional saying/s; proverb/s

​whakawhanaungatanga 
​relationship building; maintaining relationships

​whānau
​family; extended family

​whanaunga
​relation/s; relative/s

​whanaungatanga
​relationship/s; familial connection/s

​whare
​house/s; building/s

​whare tapa whā
​the four dimensions of well-being (family health, spiritual health, physical health, and mental health)

wharekai
dining hall/s

​wharekura
​Māori-medium secondary school

whenua
​land

Kīanga | Phrases

​ata mārie
​good morning

e hoa
​friend (a form of address)

​e kare
​dear friend (a form of address)

he ika haehae kupenga
someone/people who do/es things differently, thereby challenging the status quo

ka pai
​that's good; good on you; well done

​ka rawe
excellent

​kei te pai
​good; all good; good enough

​kei te pēhea koe?
​how are you?

​kia kaimanga
​go plant-based

​kia ora
​hello; hi

​mahia te mahi
​do the work

​mai i te kōrero
​by speaking

​Māori mai, tauiwi mai
​both Māori and non-Māori

​ngā iwi o tēnei rohe
​the peoples of this place

​ngā piki me ngā heke
​the ups and downs

​rawe
​awesome

​tātou katoa
all of us

​tau kē
​that's awesome

​te ao hurihuri
​the modern world

Whakataukī, whakatauākĪ | Traditional sayings

​Ehara taku toa nō te takitahi, engari nō te takitini.
​My success is not mine alone, but that of many.

I riro whenua atu, me hoki whenua mai.
​As land was taken, so land must be returned.

​Ka mua, ka muri.
​We walk backwards into the future.

​Ko te kai a te rangatira he kōrero.
​Conversation is the food of chiefs.

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