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Idioms

Phrases

Proverbs

Loan words

Historical loan words

Io

1. (personal name) supreme being - some tribes have a tradition of a supreme being, which may be a response to Christianity. However, Io occurs in a number of traditions from Polynesian islands, including Hawai‘i, the Society Islands and the Cook Islands. This suggests a more ancient tradition.

(Te Māhuri Study Guide (Ed. 1): 40-42;)

Kua whāiti te atuatanga ki a Io anake; koia i riro ai Te Toi-o-ngā-rangi hei tapu. I te mea kei a Io-mata-ngaro anake te mana o ngā atua katoa, koia i kīia ai ēnei ingoa ki a ia: Io-nui, Io-wānanga o ngā rangi, Io-te-waiora o ngā mea katoa, Io-taketake o ngā mea katoa, Io-matua o ngā mea katoa (JPS 1923:2). / All atua-like functions centred on Io alone; thus it is that Te Toi-o-ngā-rangi [the uppermost heaven] is so tapu. In consequence of the powers of all the atua being vested in Io-mata-ngaro [the supreme being] alone, he is called by these names: Io-nui [Great Io], Io-wānanga-o-ngā-rangi [Io instructor of the heavens], Io-te-waiora-o-ngā-mea-katoa [Io the health of all things], Io-taketake-o-ngā-mea-katoa [Io the origin of all things], Io-matua-o-ngā-mea-katoa [Io the parent of everything].

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See also Io-matua-te-kore, Io-matua-kore

io

1. (verb) (-a) to twitch.

Ki te mea ka io i te taha katau i runga ake i te turi, he tohu manuwhiri (White 2 1889:5). / If the right side above the knee twitches, that's a sign for visitors.

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2. (noun) sinew, muscle, nerve, nervous system.

I whara ngā io o taku ringa katau, koia rā au i kore ai e tuhi i taku kōrero inapō. / The sinews in my right arm were injured and that's why I didn't write my essay last night.

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3. (noun) strand.

E toru ngā io o te taura (W 1971:78). / There are three strands of the rope.

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4. (noun) warp, vertical thread.

Ka patua te muka mō te io, kia ngāwari; kāore e patua mō te aho, kia kaha ai (W 1971:78). / The harakeke fibre for the vertical threads is beaten to make it soft; it's not beaten for the cross-threads, so that they are strong.

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5. (noun) line, column.

I mua i te pakanga mārikatanga ki ngā io o ngā ope a Whīra Maihara Erwin Rommel, i tonoa atu e Pēneti a Meiha Arapeta Awatere rātau ko Kamupene C - ko Rūtene Te Moananui-a-Kiwa Ngārimu tētehi - kia whakaekea e rātau te taumata tūtata mai - he mea tapa nei e te hokowhitu Māori ko Hikurangi (TTR 2000:19). / Before the main battle against the lines of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel’s lines, Bennett sent Major Arapeta Awatere and C Company - including Lieutenant Te Moananui-a-Kiwa Ngārimu - to attack the adjacent point - called Hikurangi by the Māori Battalion.

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6. (noun) twitch, spasm, twinge.

Ki te mea i tata te io ki te tinana, arā i runga rawa ake o te turi, he whanaunga e haere mai ana (White 2 1889:5). / If the twinge is near the torso, that is, it is way above the knee, that is a sign that relatives are coming.

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7. (noun) spur, ridge.

pūtau io

1. (noun) nerve cell.

E rua ngā momo pūtau io, ko te io tairongo me te io whakaneke (RP 2009:345). / There are two types of nerve cells, sensory nerves and motor nerves.

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io tairongo

1. (noun) sensory nerve.

Ko te io tairongo: Ko tā ēnei ioio he kawe i ngā karere o ngā hanga tairongo (ngā whatu, ngā taringa, te ihu, te arero, te kiri) ki te aho tuaiwi me te roro (RP 2009:345). / Sensory nerve: These nerves carry the messages of the sensory organs (the eyes, ears, nose, tongue and skin) to the spinal cord and the brain.

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io whakaneke

1. (noun) motor nerve.

Ko te io whakaneke: Ko tā ēnei ioio he kawe i ngā karere mai i te roro ki te hanga nekeneke (pērā i ngā uaua me ngā repe) hei whakahaere i ā rātou mahi (RP 2009:346). / Motor nerves: These nerves carry the messages from the brain to the organs of movement (such as the muscles and glands) to perform their tasks.

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karere io

1. (noun) nerve impulse.

Ko tā ngā paerongo tāwara he huri i ngā tāwara hei karere io, ā, ka tukuna atu ki te roro hei whakamāori māna (RP 2009:372). / The taste buds change the tastes to nerve impulses which are sent to the brain to be interpreted (RP 2009:372).

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Io-matua-kore

1. (personal name) Io-the-parentless-one - one of the names for the supreme being, Io.

See also Io-matua-te-kore

raru ā-io

1. (noun) neurological problem.

Io-matua-te-kore

1. (personal name) supreme being - some tribes have a tradition of a supreme being, which may be a response to Christianity and this is one of a number of names for Io.

Nā ēnei ingoa katoa, e tauhere ana i ngā mea katoa i ngā rangi-tūhāhā, tae mai ki Te Muri-wai-hou, ki Rarohenga, i a Io anake. I konei ka kīia tētahi o ōna ingoa, ko Io-matua-te-kore (JPS 1923:2) / All things in the twelve heavens are bound together with Io, including Te Muri-wai-hou at Raro-henga. Here one of his names is said to be Io the parentless one.

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poutiriao

1. (noun) spiritual guardians - mythical male beings, guardians of the Universe appointed by Io-matua, the Supreme Being.

Ko ngā poutiriao ngā kaipupuri i te ora o ngā mea katoa (JPS 1927:291). / The poutiriao are the guardians of the welfare of all things.

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2. (noun) bodyguard, escort.

Ko Tūpaea te poutiriao mō rātau ki Matatā (TTR 1990:13). / Tūpaea was their escort to Matatā.

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kete o te wānanga

1. (noun) baskets of knowledge - these are the three baskets of knowledge obtained for mankind by the god Tāne, known primarily as the god of the forests and all that dwells within them. To acquire the baskets of knowledge, Tāne had to ascend to the twelfth heaven, to Te Toi-o-ngā-rangi, and there be ushered into the presence of the Supreme God, of Io-matua-kore himself, to make his request. The request was granted and hence the knowledge we now have in our possession and at our disposal. Tāne had to reconnoitre and negotiate eleven other heavens before ascending to the twelfth and there receive the knowledge he sought. The three baskets of knowledge are usually called te kete tuauri, te kete tuatea and te kete aronui.

Kete tuauri, kete tuatea, kete aronui: Ko ngā kete o te wānanga i tīkina e Tāne i a Io-matua (M 2006:12). / Kit of sacred knowledge, kit of ancestral knowledge, kit of life's knowledge. These are the kits of knowledge that Tāne fetched from Io the-parent (M 2006:15).

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See also kete tuatea, kete aronui, kete tuauri, kete uruuru rangi, kete uruuru matua, kete uruuru tau

wairua

1. (noun) spirit, soul - spirit of a person which exists beyond death. It is the non-physical spirit, distinct from the body and the mauri. To some, the wairua resides in the heart or mind of someone while others believe it is part of the whole person and is not located at any particular part of the body. The wairua begins its existence when the eyes form in the foetus and is immortal. While alive a person's wairua can be affected by mākutu through karakia. Tohunga can damage wairua and also protect the wairua against harm. The wairua of a miscarriage or abortion can become a type of guardian for the family or may be used by tohunga for less beneficial purposes. Some believe that all animate and inanimate things have a whakapapa and a wairua. Some believe that atua Māori, or Io-matua-kore, can instill wairua into something. Tohunga, the agents of the atua, are able to activate or instil a wairua into something, such as a new wharenui, through karakia. During life, the wairua may leave the body for brief periods during dreams. The wairua has the power to warn the individual of impending danger through visions and dreams. On death the wairua becomes tapu. It is believed to remain with or near the body and speeches are addressed to the person and the wairua of that person encouraging it on its way to Te Pō. Eventually the wairua departs to join other wairua in Te Pō, the world of the departed spirits, or to Hawaiki, the ancestral homeland. The spirit travels to Te Reinga where it descends to Te Pō. Wairua of the dead that linger on earth are called kēhua. During kawe mate, or hari mate, hura kōhatu and other important occasions the wairua is summoned to return to the marae.

(Te Kōhure Textbook (Ed. 2): 221-228;)

Haere rā i a koe ka kōpikopiko atu ki Te Hono-i-wairua, ki te kāpunipunitanga o te wairua (TTR 1998:37). / We farewell you as you wend your way to the Gathering Place of Spirits, the meeting place of departed souls.
Te tinana, te hinengaro, me te wairua ēnei e toru, te mea nui o ēnei ko te wairua. Te tinana: he anga kau nō te wairua. Te hinengaro: he kaiwhakaatu ki te ao he pēnei nā te wairua kei roto i te tangata (TTT 1/12/1930:2215). / Of these three things, the body, the mind and the spirit, the most important is the spirit. The body is the vehicle for the spirit. The mind shows the world what the spirit of the person is like.

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2. (noun) attitude, quintessence, feel, mood, feeling, nature, essence, atmosphere.

Ko te wairua o te kōrero, kia Māori mai (HM 2/1994:10). / The feel of the language should be Māori.

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3. (noun) bonfire moss, common cord-moss, Funaria hygrometrica - a moss that grows in profusion on moist, shady, and damp bare soil, especially on sites of old fires, and in plant pots in glasshouses and shadehouses. Found throughout Aotearoa/New Zealand.

Hine-ahu-one

1. (personal name) also known as Hine-hau-one, she was the first woman created by Tāne-nui-a-Rangi and Io on the beach at Kurawaka.

(Te Māhuri Study Guide (Ed. 1): 48-51;)

E kī ana ā tātau nei kōrero, ko Tiki te tangata tuatahi, ko Hine-ahu-one te wahine tuatahi i pokepoketia ki te one i Kurawaka (TTT 1/8/1925:275). / Our narratives say that Tiki was the first man and that Hine-ahu-one, the first woman, was shaped with earth at Kurawaka.

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See also Hine-hau-one

Hawaiki

1. (location) ancient homeland - the places from which Māori migrated to Aotearoa/New Zealand. According to some traditions it was Io, the supreme being, who created Hawaiki-nui, Hawaiki-roa, Hawaiki-pāmamao and Hawaiki-tapu, places inhabited by atua. It is believed that the wairua returns to these places after death, and speeches at tangihanga refer to these as the final resting place of wairua.

I kī rā ahau he tohu aua whetū. Koia nei hoki te kāpehu a ō tātou tūpuna i whakawhiti mai ai i Hawaiki (TTT 1/7/1922:3). / I have stated that those were navigational stars. they were the compass of our ancestors who migrated here from Hawaiki.

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