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Polynesian and South Sea Islander Names

Pamela Redmond
By Pamela Redmond
Updated Sat May 17 2025
Polynesian and South Sea Islander Names

As Hawaiian names become more visible and more popular internationally, interest has grown in names throughout the South Sea Islands.

Disney's Moana put a spotlight on several Polynesian mythology names, including the Hawaiian place name Maui. Other names from Polynesian mythology gaining wider visibility include Tane, a powerful sky god, and Pele, the Hawaiian fire goddess.

Adding to their appeal, many of these names have stylish nature meanings related to the sea, sky, or flowers.

In this group of Polynesian names and South Sea Island namers, we also include Fijian names, Tahitian names, Tongan names, and Maori names. Here is our full list of names from the Polynesian and South Sea islands, ordered by their current popularity on Nameberry.

RELATED:

Hawaiian Names

Mythological Names

  1. Kane

    • Origin:

      Celtic

    • Meaning:

      "warrior"

    • Description:

      A name of multiple identities: a somewhat soap-operatic single-syllable surname, a homonym for the biblical bad boy Cain, and, when found in Japan and Hawaii, it transforms into the two syllable KA-neh. Kane also has multiple meanings: in Welsh, it's "beautiful"; in Japanese, "golden"; and in Hawaiian, "man of the Eastern sky."
  2. Maeva

    • Origin:

      Tahitian

    • Meaning:

      "welcome"

    • Description:

      Though it sounds like a variation of the Irish Maeve, Maeva actually hails from Tahiti, and is currently enjoying a wave of popularity in France, where it ranks in the Top 100, possibly via popular French folk singer and actress Maeva Meline.
  3. Maia

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "mother"

    • Description:

      Maia was derived from the Greek word maia, meaning "mother." In Greek legend, she was the fair-haired daughter of Atlas who mothered Zeus's favorite illegitimate son, Hermes. To the Romans, Maia was the incarnation of the earth mother and goddess of spring, after whom they named the month of May. Maya is the more common spelling.
  4. Malakai

    • Origin:

      Fijian and Tongan form of Malachi

    • Description:

      Malakai puts a South Sea Island spin on the Biblical Malachi, which may be just what It needs to fit in with contemporary trends.
  5. Ana

    • Origin:

      Variation of Hannah

    • Meaning:

      "grace"

    • Description:

      Confident and compact, Ana is a widely used variation of the Biblical Hannah. Favored in Spain, Slovenia, Bosnia, Portugal, and Croatia, this shorter spelling has the same substance and versatility of its longer counterparts.
  6. Kai

    • Origin:

      Hawaiian

    • Meaning:

      "sea"

    • Description:

      This appealing multi-cultural name, pronounced KYE, is beginning to be used for girls as well as boys. Among its many derivations and meanings: "sea" in Hawaiian, "forgiveness" in Japanese, "willow tree" in Navajo, "food" in Maori, and "earth" in Scandinavian. For girls, it debuted on the US Top 1000 in 2010.
  7. Manu

    • Origin:

      Finnish, Maori, Hawaiian, Sanskrit, Akan, Hebrew

    • Meaning:

      "greatest; bird; wise; second born; God is with us"

    • Description:

      An international name that, while short and simple, sounds strong and distinctive, stylish and sweet all at once. It may appeal to those who want a name that works in multiple languages, while also feeling fresh and charming.
  8. Kiri

    • Origin:

      Maori

    • Meaning:

      "tree bark"

    • Description:

      The name Kiri was made famous by New Zealand soprano Kiri Te Kanawa, whose original name was Claire. Cute but slight, Kiri is close to several other names from Kiriah to Keira to Kyra and its diminutive Kyrie.
  9. Tai

    • Origin:

      Chinese

    • Meaning:

      "great extreme"

    • Description:

      Tai, which rhymes with Kai, is a unisex name with a range of international references. It means the equivalent of "too much" in Chinese but is also used as a Maori name meaning "the tide" and in Romanian means "yours." While it's only ever ranked in the U.S. Top 1000 as a girls' name, during the height of the popularity of Olympic skater Tai Babilonia, Tai makes a simple intriguing modern choice for either gender.
  10. Kirrily

    • Origin:

      Aboriginal, Australian

    • Meaning:

      "tree bark or leaf"

    • Description:

      Kirrily, which rhymes with cheerily, is a name that's uniquely popular in Australia. It originated in recent decades as an elaboration of several similar names – the European Kyra or Keira, the Maori Kiri which means tree bark, or the Aboriginal word kira which means leaf – plus the lee sound.
  11. Kauri

    • Origin:

      Maori or Finnish

    • Meaning:

      "tree or deer"

    • Description:

      A Maori name derived from a type of tree native to New Zealand's North Island.
  12. Ngaio

    • Origin:

      Maori

    • Meaning:

      "reflections on the water"

    • Description:

      New Zealand writer Ngaio (born Edith Ngaio) Marsh is the best-known bearer of this Maori nature name, properly pronounced ng (like the end of sing) -EYE-oh. It is the name of a tree indigenous to New Zealand, also called the Mousehole Tree.
  13. Tane

    • Origin:

      Maori, Tahitian

    • Meaning:

      "man, male"

    • Description:

      In Maori mythology Tāne (also called Tāne Mahuta) was the god of forests and birds, son of the sky god Rangi and the earth goddess Papa. Tāne was the one who pushed his powerful parents apart to create the land and sky.
  14. Nyree

    • Origin:

      English from Maori

    • Meaning:

      "flaxen"

    • Description:

      Anglicized form of Ngaire, this name is sometimes heard in New Zealand and very occasionally in England.
  15. Tua

    • Origin:

      Samoan, Indonesian, Latin

    • Meaning:

      "stand, rise; old, ripe; yours"

    • Description:

      Succinct and deceptively simple, Tua is a multicultural, unisex choice with a variety of meanings. It is most notably borne by NFL player, Tua Tagovailoa.
  16. Ngaire

    • Origin:

      Maori

    • Meaning:

      "flax flower"

    • Description:

      This name is common in New Zealand and Australia, with famous bearers including TV producer Ngaire Fuata and academic and author Ngaire Woods. It is pronounced ng (like the end of sing) -EYE-ree.
  17. Tama

    • Origin:

      Maori, Meskwaki

    • Meaning:

      "son or boy; crash of thunder"

    • Description:

      A simple, easily-translated Maori name that coincides with a stormy Meskwaki name (also spelled Taimah) used as a country and city name in the US.
  18. Anahera

    • Origin:

      Maori

    • Meaning:

      "angel"

    • Description:

      This feminine name — simply "angel" imported into Māori phonology — is fresher than Angela and less Hollywood than Angelina.
  19. Anahera

    • Origin:

      Maori

    • Meaning:

      "angel"

    • Description:

      This feminine name — simply "angel" imported into Māori phonology — is fresher than Angela and less Hollywood than Angelina.
  20. Nikau

    • Origin:

      Maori

    • Meaning:

      "palm tree"

    • Description:

      Nikau is among the most popular Maori names for boys in New Zealand. It sounds like a cousin to Nicholas, but Nikau is actually the name of a palm tree native to the islands.

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