27. Does the Māori language have connections to ancient Sanskrit?

Origins of the Māori Language

Influence of Sanskrit on Māori

To understand the development of the Māori language, it can be insightful to compare it with other languages. One approach is to examine the similarities between Māori and the Sanskrit language.

Abraham Fornander in Hawaii and both John MacMillan Brown and Edward Tregear in New Zealand independently concluded that Polynesians, including Māori, shared an Aryan ancestry with Europeans. Fornander presented his findings in Account of the Polynesian Race (1878), and later, in A Comparative Vocabulary of the Polynesian and Indo-European Languages (1885). Similarly, Tregear's Aryan Māori was published in the same year. MacMillan published Maori and Polynesian: Their Origin, History and Culture in 1907.

The Sanskrit-speaking Aryans became the dominant group in India. Some Aryans moved through India into the Southeast Asian archipelago, and eventually to the Pacific.

MacMillan wrote: “likeness between Indonesian and Polynesian words is largely due to the Sanskritic influence of immigration from India to Indonesia”.

Both Fornander and Tregear compared the pronunciation of Māori and Sanskrit words, demonstrating a striking similarity. The following examples are drawn from Tregear’s “Aryan Māori”:

• Sanskrit (Sk): Pa – to protect

  Māori (M.pronounciation): Pa – a fortified town

  Other Māori derivations: Papa – father, Para – bravery, Pae – to surround with a border, Pakuku – to screen from the wind.

  
  

• Sanskrit (Sk): Var – water

  Māori (M.pronounciation): Wai – water, Awa – a river, Awha – rain, Kakawa – sweat, Rewa – to float, Kowa – a neap tide.

  
  

• Sanskrit (Sk): Ma – to measure

  Māori (M.pronounciation): Mama – light, Taumaha – heavy, Maro – a fathom, Matake – to inspect, Matau – to know.

  
  

• Sanskrit (Sk): Ka-s – to shine

  Māori (M.pronounciation): Hika – to kindle fire, Ka – to be lighted, Kaka – red-hot, Kanaku – fire, Kanapa – bright, Kanapu – lightning.

These similarities in pronunciation and meaning raise the possibility of shared linguistic roots. However, it’s important to note that Māori was written down by English-speaking settlers who did not natively speak Māori. The English alphabet used to represent Māori words had to match the spoken sounds, but no language is perfectly phonetic, meaning there is always a degree of variability in sound-letter correspondence.

Genetics and Linguistic Evolution

Despite these linguistic similarities, having similar words does not necessarily indicate direct descent. Genetic studies show that Polynesians, including Māori, largely originated from Southeast Asia and New Guinea, regions that were melting pots of cultures, influenced by migrants from both the north (China) and the west (India). Indian migrants, including Buddhists, brought the Sanskrit language, which influenced the local languages in the region.

As people migrated from Southeast Asia and New Guinea eastward to Polynesia, they carried their language with them. Over time, as these migrants lost contact with their place of origin, their language evolved into a number of different forms, including Māori. While this language adapted to the new environment, many words from the original language remained.

Once in their new land, the original language underwent further changes as it adapted to new circumstances, leading to regional variations in vocabulary, dialects, and linguistic nuances. These linguistic differences emerged as groups remained geographically isolated.

In conclusion, the linguistic connections between Māori and Sanskrit suggest that the speakers of Sanskrit had an influence on the formation of the Māori language. The most likely scenario is that this influence occurred before migration from Southeast Asia to Polynesia, or perhaps some people came directly to New Zealand with the language merging at a later stage.

Do you know of any other connections between Māori and ancient Sanskrit? What language do you think New Zealand's first settlers spoke?

Your next read in the series: 28. Did humans settle New Zealand before the Polynesians?