whenua
Maori
Etymology
From Proto-Polynesian *fenua (cognate with Hawaiian henua and Tahitian fenua), from Proto-Central Pacific *vanua, from Proto-Oceanic *panua, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *banua (compare with Malay benua).
Noun
whenua
- land
- country
- ground
- placenta, afterbirth
Derived terms
- (land): tāngata whenua
- (ground): hua whenua
- Whenuatū
See also
- motu (“an island”)
References
- “whenua” in John C. Moorfield, Te Aka: Maori-English, English-Maori Dictionary and Index, 3rd edition, Longman/Pearson Education New Zealand, 2011, →ISBN.
- Tregear, Edward (1891) Maori-Polynesian Comparative Dictionary, Wellington, New Zealand: Lyon and Blair, page 620-1