/ˈtʌŋi/, /ˈtaŋi/
OriginBorrowed from Māori tangi (“lament, mourning, funeral ceremony”).
- New-ZealandA Maori dirge, or song for the dead.
- New-ZealandFuneral rites; a funeral ceremony, a tangihanga.
“He goes on to say that the Government, The Maori Sanitary Councils, and the Native Land Court have endeavoured to prevent Maori tangis lasting for more than three or four days […].”
“Late in the nineteenth century Māori women began to adopt the Victorian mourning costume of black clothes for tangi, and the practice continued long after Pākehā New Zealanders had dropped the custom.”
- New-ZealandCrying, wailing, especially when seeing someone after a long absence.
Formstangis(plural) · tangi(plural)