Māʻohi
/maːˈʔohi/noun
A Tahitian term meaning a native or Indigenous person of Tahiti and the surrounding Society Islands.
Did you know?Māʻohi is used in modern Tahitian cultural revival movements as a self-identifying term, especially in contrast to colonial labels imposed from outside.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Polynesian
Proto-Polynesian
*ma(a)qoli
“Reconstructed term associated with a native, local, or Indigenous person; the exact historical derivation remains debated.”
Early Eastern Polynesian
Eastern Polynesian
*ma(a)oli
“Developed regional forms meaning native, local, genuine, or Indigenous.”
Pre-European Tahitian
Tahitian
Māʻohi
“Native or Indigenous person; the glottal stop is represented by the ʻokina.”
18th–19th Century
Tahitian/European records
Māohi, Maohi
“Forms recorded by European observers for Tahitian people and their language or culture.”
Modern English
English
Māʻohi
“A loanword used in English-language writing about Indigenous Tahitians, Tahitian identity, and Māʻohi culture.”