kākano
1. (noun) seed, kernel, pip, berry, grain.
Ki te mea ka taka te kākano ki te wāhi e tika ana ka tinaku, ā, ka pihi ake he tipu hou. / If a seed falls in the right place it will germinate and a new seedling will sprout.
See also kano
2. (noun) ova, ovum, egg cell.
Ko te pūkākano ngā pū e rua e kawea ai ngā kākano mai i te wharekano ki te kōpū o te wahine i te wā o te tuku kākano (RP 2009:383). / The fallopian tubes are the tubes whereby the ova are conveyed from the ovary to the woman's uterus at the time of ovulation.
3. (noun) descent, stock, ancestry, lineage, pedigree.
E kore e hekeheke, he kākano rangatira (W 1971:94). / A chiefly lineage will not disappear. (A whakataukī referring to the mana of a chief's ancestors being passed down through the generations, usually producing effective leadership.)
Koia a Ouenuku i mea atu ai ki a ia, "E tama, e kore e tika kia haere koe ki te whare o tō tuakana, ehara hoki koe i te tino tangata." I puta ai taua kupu nei, 'tino tangata', arā i te kākano ariki, he mea ki te whaea o Ruatapu, i mau herehere a ia i roto i te pakanga (WIII 1889:14). / That's why Ouenuku said to him, "Son, it will not be right for you to go to your older brother's house because you are not a person of status." That statement 'a person of status' was expressed and that is the chiefly lineage and refers to Ruatapu's mother who was taken captive in battle.
