Te Pāpaka-a-Māui

Maori

Etymology

te + pāpaka + a + Māui. Literally means "the paddle crab of Māui", perhaps referring to the continent's shape resembling a crab. The name is also related to the two other names for North Island and South Island of New Zealand, which were related to a folktale about Maui.

Proper noun

Te Pāpaka-a-Māui (neologism)

  1. Australia (a country consisting of a main island, the island of Tasmania and other smaller islands, located in Oceania; historically, a collection of former colonies of the British Empire)
  2. (geology) Australia (a continent consisting of the land on the Australian tectonic plate, i.e. Australia, New Guinea and intervening islands)

Synonyms

References

  • “Te Pāpaka-a-Māui” in John C. Moorfield, Te Aka: Maori–English, English–Maori Dictionary and Index, 3rd edition, Longman/Pearson Education New Zealand, 2011, →ISBN.
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