Someone’s got to say it. Much as I enjoy reading your regular opinion pieces by Thomas Wynn, he unfortunately uses the wrong word for genealogy/family tree quite frequently in his writing.

The correct word in Cook Islands Maori is papa’anga; check Buse’s and Savage’s Maori dictionary if you want to be sure.

It is not akapapa, which is to prepare, or get ready.

Mr Wynn is not the only person to use this word incorrectly: a lot of young people of Cook Islands descent from NZ also mistake the word which sounds much like whakapapa (NZ Maori word for family tree/genealogy). It’s not just a case of dropping the “wh” sound, folks.

A lot of words in NZ Maori may sound similar but have a different 

meaning(s) here; some words may even be spelled the same but have a different meaning here in Cook Islands,

Eg: taonga, or taoanga. Here it means ‘burden’; ‘title’, not ‘treasure’ like it does in New Zealand.

Akono ia toou reo.

Tiokiri

(Name and address supplied)

Thomas Wynne responds – I always appreciate the correction, especially with our Reo Māori and will amend this going forward. Likewise, and for the sake of clarity, people often forget my name is actually spelt Wynne and not Wynn or as I am sometimes referred to as Wayne? It is an Irish name not Welsh!