tangi

Noun

tangi (plural tangis or tangi)

1. (New Zealand) A Maori dirge, or song for the dead.
2. (New Zealand) Funeral 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 […].1906, The District Court and Magistrate's Court Reports
   • 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.2003, Michael King, The Penguin History of Aotearoa New Zealand, Penguin, published 2023, page 243
3. (New Zealand) Crying, wailing, especially when seeing someone after a long absence.