At a Glance
- Meaning
- The Pleiades star cluster, and by extension the Māori new-year season marked by its rising
- Origin
- Māori
- Pronunciation
- mah-tah-REE-kee
Matariki is a Māori name meaning “the Pleiades star cluster, and by extension the Māori new-year season marked by its rising”. It appears in our list of 200+ Baby Names That Mean Star — Celestial Picks for the Next Generation.
Meaning & Origin of Matariki
Meaning: The Pleiades star cluster, and by extension the Māori new-year season marked by its rising.
Origin: Māori.
A common claim: Often explained as 'the eyes of the god Tāwhirimātea,' plucked out and placed in the sky. Actually: This is a folk etymology. The accepted derivation is Proto-Polynesian *mataliki, unrelated to the story of the eyes of Tāwhirimātea.
Source: Wiktionary.
How to Pronounce Matariki
mah-tah-REE-keeIPA /mɑːtɑːˈriːki/
Popularity of Matariki
Matariki doesn’t appear in U.S. Social Security birth records, which include every name given to at least five babies in a year — so it’s rare in the U.S.
Lists That Include Matariki
Similar Names
Puanga · Whetumarama · Tawera · Whetu · Kopu · Makali'i
