CoLENSO. — On the Colour Sense of the Maoris. 55 



individual of a family,* as they are for a stirps, family, or genus ; and 

 commonly so by way of laconism, ellipsis, abbreviation, or carelessness ; 

 always, however, perfectly well understood among themselves. Hence, 

 owing to this common usage, appellatives and proper names become 

 gradually dropped, and fall into abeyance ; though, as the Maoris formerly 

 were, never wholly forgotten. 



(2.) That being a truly natural observant race, and fully acquainted 

 with nature, they often, or generally, used her peculiar productions and 

 appearances to express colour, or the exact hue of colour required ; — there 

 was no mistake here, among themselves. For in the highest minds a 

 single descriptive word, or sign, is sufficient to evoke crowds of shadowy 

 associations. 



(3.) That from the particular shade of colour of a thing, they often gave 

 to other and very opposite things their names, t as in the foregoing example 

 of the pink-fleshed taro. 



* Harakehe — flax, (of which they have more than 50 sorts, or varieties, every one 

 bearing its distinct and proper name). 



Ika — fish, (nearly all fishes ; each, however, has its own proper name). 



Kai — food, (also, all articles of food ; though each one has its own proper name). 



Kahu — a garment, (all garments, of which they had a great and varied number, all 

 bearing proper names). 



Kowhatu — a stone, (all stones, etc). 



Hua — ^fruit, (of plant, tree, bird (egg), fish (roe), etc). 



Rakau — tree, (of all trees ; yet each one has its own proper name, and some 

 several names for various parts of the same tree, which are often given for the colour). 



Pipi — a bivalve shell-fish, (and generally for all salt-water bivalves ; each one, 

 however, has it own distinct name). 



Pupu — a univalve shell-fish, (ditto). 



Kuniara — sweet potato, (yet many sorts, all bearing proper names). 



+ Of which a few instances are here given by way of example : — 



Paua, the black flesh of the Haliotis ; also, a black sunburnt potato. 



Mangu, mamangu, and mangumangu, black (colour) ; also, ink, blacking, etc. 



Tawatawa, the mackerel, and tamure, the snapper fish ; also, a peculiar appearance 

 of the sky from cirrus and cirro-cumulus clouds, through which the blue appears some- 

 thing like the deep blue wavy marks on the back of a mackerel freshly caught (this term 

 of mackerel-sky, is also given to it by Europeans) ; also, resembling the dark wavy lines on 

 the flesh of a fresh snapper under its skin when cooked. 



Toroamahoe, the white-skinned root of the malioe tree (Melicytus ramiflonis) ; also, a 

 variety of whitish skinned kumara of exactly the same shade of colour. 



Pokere kaahu, a dark purple variety of kumara ; — from pokere, the dark purple flesh 

 of the fruit of the tawa tree {Nesodaphne taiva), and ka aim, to proceed towards; to 

 grow up to ; to become like to. 



Parakaraka, the orange-red colour of the fully ripe karaka fruit ; also, a light 

 ped^ish-orange variety of kumara, [N.B, This variety of kumara has ever been believed 



